For Your Happiness
by AwesomeGizmo
Summary: Maleficent was able to reach Aurora before she had pricked her finger, saving her from the curse. With Aurora safely back in the Moors what lengths will Maleficent, Diaval, and Aurora herself go to in an effort to keep her safe? What lengths will Stefan go to, to bring down Maleficent? (Diaval/Maleficent)
1. Chapter One

**A.N: So this is my first Maleficent story, and to be honest I'm quite nervous. As I am with any new fanfiction group I write for, so please review and thanks for reading! Also, in each chapter I'll say a few after words about the chapter, or makes announcements, etc. **

**Disclaimer: All rights go to their respectable owners.**

...

Maleficent urged her faithful companion on, shouting at his horse-form to go faster. She _had_ to get to Aurora in time, she _had _to.

She glanced at the sun, for it was not yet setting and as long as it showed itself against the hills her Beastie wasn't safe.

"Faster Diaval, we are running out of time!" His mistress gripped his neck for all she was worth, clutching onto him for support, in more way than one, but he didn't know that. He forced himself to speed up, his hooves pounding the earth served as a rhythm to remind him why he had to keep his great speeds.

The sun was beginning to set when Maleficent jumped off Diaval's back, a quick flick of her wrist changing him to his human form. She could feel her curse's magic get stronger, luring Aurora into it's trap.

"Mistress, he is waiting for us in there. If we go in we will never come out." He said, holding onto the unconscious prince's arm.

"Then don't come. I'll get her alone." She replied, casting a small glance around her shoulder. Diaval sighed, but shook his head.

"No Mistress, I will come."

Maleficent nodded her gratitude and the pair made haste walking into the palace, knowing of the dangers that lay ahead. Diaval knew the palace by heart, having made countless trips to spy on the King, in more forms than a raven. So, for the first time in years, Diaval lead Maleficent.

"This way Mistress, Aurora's room is this way."

"How do you know?" She whispered, glancing behind her back every few seconds, paranoid she would not hear a guard come behind her.

"The King has had it prepared since she was a babe, I've seen it."

It was about the only good thing he had seen in the entire palace. The only pure thing, because even though the King didn't know his daughter Diaval did, and Aurora had been the sweetest child, she still was. Besides this room there were horrors he rather not describe, the most wretched being what the King had called 'His Trophy Room' which was housing Maleficent's wings.

She nodded and followed him, blindly almost, for she did not know where to go. She saw iron everywhere, in the walls, in the frames on the windows, felt it on every guard they had evaded, and it sickened her.

The pair stopped, and stood staring at the upcoming passageway. Massive iron thorns protruded from every angle, for nearly twenty feet ahead of them.

"I think you're right," Maleficent breathed, "Stefan has been expecting us." She walked ahead of Diaval, casting a smile behind her to tell him she was jesting. He sent her a half-hearted grin back, following her.

"I have seen his obsession grow over the years Mistress, but I never thought he would go to such lengths..."

"Yes, well obviously he can hold a grudge as well as I."

"Your humor is oddly timed Mistress." Diaval said, his body bending awkwardly in an attempt to avoid the iron thorns as well. His head whipped around when he heard Maleficent cry out, a fresh burn marking her skin.

They made it through the wall of thorns relatively safely, her faerie blood healing the offending burn. She was nearly running, and he knew she could feel her curse getting stronger, for she had told him as much earlier. He went with her, and when she hit the guard, causing him to fall over unconscious he threw open the doors to Aurora's chambers.

Aurora wasn't there.

Diaval looked to Maleficent, and watched as her shoulder's sagged in defeat. She had no idea where Aurora would be going, no idea how to get there and no longer any idea on how to stop this curse.

"We've failed Diaval, what are we to do now?" She turned her head towards him, sorrow distorting her beautiful features.

A sudden notion dawned on Diaval, Aurora had been locked inside her chambers, and that meant there was only one way for her to get out.

"Perhaps not yet Mistress, there is a servant's passage. It is the only way for Aurora to leave her chambers."

"Show me." She commanded, he gladly obliged. "Leave the boy here, he may not be needed if she is not yet sleeping."

Diaval nodded and placed the Prince down, entering the passage right behind his mistress.

"So she isn't sleeping yet?" He asked, quickening his pace as she did.

"No, but I feel my curse," she stopped, and Diaval knew she was feeling regretful again, "my curse luring her in." Maleficent finished, refusing to look at her servant.

"Then we must hurry, this way." He said, hoping to save Aurora not only for her sake, but for Maleficent's. "There is only one room I can think of that she could find a spindle."

"And where is that?"

"The only room that still holds spindles." And for the brief moment brown met green and the two locked gazes, before Maleficent turned away and hastened her pace again.

They found Aurora a short time later, but she was not sleeping. Maleficent stepped in front of the young girl before she could advance on the spindle, tears dotting her eyes. Because she hadn't failed, and Aurora was still awake, and she was safe and her heart was lightened.

Diaval sighed in relief as well, a smile on his lips, noticing the way Maleficent cried in joy.

She held onto Aurora with a tight grip, holding her until she felt her curse diminish, the blank stare left the blonde's eyes and they came back into focus.

"Godmother?" Aurora whispered, bringing her arms up to return the hug. "What are you doing here?"

"Hello Beastie," Maleficent whispered, her breath coming out in overjoyed gasps. "I had to save you."

Aurora drew back and smiled, taking in the room around her she soon realized just what had happened.

"I wasn't asleep, was I Godmother?" She asked, holding her Godmother by her arms.

"No Beastie, we got here in time."

"Is Diaval with you?" Aurora asked, glancing backwards at the smiling raven-man, or her Godmother's shadow as she so preferred to say.

"Well, that's up for debate, what with all, or lack of I should say, attention I'm getting." Diaval said, drawing Aurora into a hug. Aurora laughed, and so did Maleficent.

Maleficent had a beautiful laugh, one that was too rarely heard, and her face lit up as she did so. It only served to enhance her beauty.

"Godmother, are we going back to the Moors now?"

"If that is what you wish Beastie, but you are a princess here, and your father is here as well." Maleficent replied, looking away from Aurora.

"I still want to live in the Moors with you Godmother, Father will understand, he will see that I am still awake."

"Aurora, your Father will not understand, he will be overjoyed at your safety, but he will not understand any desire for you to live with me."

Realization dawned on Aurora, from the snippets her Godmother had given her, and the pieces of conversation she had picked up here, at the palace.

"Your wings. My father, he took them, didn't he?" Horror crossed her features, the new piece of information confirmed by her Godmother's look of hurt at the subject. "Why would he do that?"

"Aurora, I think it's time I tell you my, entire history, for you know little of me and I think you should know everything before you make a decision."

So Maleficent lead Aurora out of the room of spindles, and she proceeded to tell Aurora of everything that had happened, from the moment she met Stefan to Aurora's christening.

"Your aunts, they are faeries who vowed to take care of you. They unfortunately, didn't know how to take care of an infant, and that is when you first met Diaval. The story goes on from there." She finished, brushing away Aurora's hair.

"I always sort of presumed you had something to do with me not... well, dying before I reached three." Aurora said, her tone light and a grin on her face. "Three is when I have my first memory of you Godmother."

Maleficent nodded and looked to Diaval, who stood a few feet away leaning against a wall. There was a satisfied smile on his face, his mistress was happy, as well as what he considered his fledgling, and so he was too.

"So, now you face a choice." Maleficent said, "You could stay here, and become the princess and ruler of your people, or come back to the Moors with me."

"It is hardly a choice Godmother, I wish to go home with you." Without missing a heartbeat Aurora replied, wrapping her arms around Maleficent. "But I can visit with my aunts and father occasionally right?"

"Anything to make you happy, Beastie."

Aurora nodded happily. Outstretching her arms she rushed to Diaval, and let him spin her as he often did in the Moors.

"Aurora, Diaval, we must go, now." There were only a few times when Diaval had seen his mistress anxious, this was one of them. "The sun has set, Stefan will be looking for Aurora."

They nodded and rushed away, checking over their shoulders anxiously. With Stefan's paranoia, he had called the guards to aid him in 'defending' against Maleficent. This allowed the trio to make an easy escape.

"Into a horse." Maleficent mumbled, flicking her wrist. Diaval transformed and she placed Aurora onto his back, climbing on seconds after.

"Take us home Diaval." Maleficent instructed, a wide smile forming as he took off and she realized they had succeeded, that something had gone right.

...

Inside the palace walls King Stefan was in a rage.

"That _witch _has taken my daughter from me again!" He shouted, slamming his fist down onto the table.

"We'll get your daughter back Your Majesty." His captain promised, standing as tall and firm as possible.

"You better hope so, I want her head on my table. Tonight!"

His mind overtaken by thoughts of rage and revenge. He _would_ have Maleficent's dead body presented to him, he should of killed her when he had the chance.

**A.N: So, there's the first chapter. I changed the dialogue a bit, and made a few other minor tweaks, but nothing affecting my end point. This will be a Diaval/Maleficent story, because I think they're the cutest couple. Also, I gladly welcome constructive criticism because it's in my opinion that the only way for me to learn how to be a better writer is to learn from better writers. :) Thank you all so much for your time to read this. **

**So that's about all I want to say about this chapter, thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter Two

**A.N: So, although I just published this yesterday I'm updating it for two reasons. A: There were some weird technical difficulties and the story wasn't showing up, and B: I am really, really excited for this story.**

**Thanks if you reviewed, followed or favourited, it gives me a bit of an assurance that my story isn't total crap. Lol! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners.**

...

Back in the Moors Aurora walked to her Godmother, biting her lip nervously. Maleficent seemed to be in deep thought, staring at her wall of thorns.

"Godmother, I'm sorry for the things that I said, before I mean." Aurora said, looking down in shame. Her words were harsh and in her anger she hadn't noticed how hurt her Godmother had looked.

"You reacted as any would." Maleficent said, giving her a weak smile. "I understand completely, what I did to you was unforgiveable."

"But I hurt your feelings Godmother, and you've already been hurt so much. I'm sorry, I didn't mean any of it."

"I know, Beastie. You are forgiven."

Aurora's face lit up in a smile, and she hugged her Godmother for what seemed like the hundredth time that night.

"So, I can live here now? Like we planned?" She asked, gesturing to the beautiful Moors.

"Of course, and you can sleep in the trees and be friends with all the creatures..." Maleficent teased, glancing at her great kingdom. "And instead of being a princess of the human world you will be a princess of the Moors, are you sure that is what you want?"

"Yes Godmother, the only reason I returned to the palace was because I was hurt, and I wanted to meet my father. While I was there though, I realized that it was not my home and that I didn't belong there. You and Diaval raised me, and I love you two."

Maleficent grinned and stroked Aurora's hair, fixing it, and brushing it away from her eyes. "I wouldn't have survived if I had lost you, I would of been eaten with grief and guilt I would let your father kill me."

"He sickens me." Aurora declared, turning to face her Godmother. "What he did to you is horrifying and I have no desire to have anything to do with him."

"Now Aurora, you mustn't hate your father for something he did to me. He is your father, and he loves you. You are a kind and beautiful girl, don't darken your soul with hate as I have done."

"I understand Godmother, but I still feel ill-willed towards him."

"If you are to hold any ill-will against your father let it be for something he did to you, instead of hating him for something he did to me nearly twenty years ago."

"He did lock me in my room." Aurora said, an uncharacteristic frown on her face. "And he also wanted to kill you, and I think I can hold _a little _ill-will for that."

Maleficent chuckled a deep throaty laugh, still fiddling with Aurora's blonde locks. "Hate does not go good on your Aurora, do not show it often."

"You would of survived you know."

"What?" Maleficent said, her accented voice still tinted with laughter.

"If you hadn't gotten to me in time, you would of survived. Diaval would of helped you." Maleficent froze, blinking in surprise.

"Well he is my servant, so yes he would have to help me."

"Not like that Godmother," Aurora sighed, now spinning her body around to face Maleficent. "I don't own all of your heart, even though you've told me I do. I own whatever was left after Father broke it, and Diaval stole it."

"That's, not true Beastie."

"It is true, you just wont admit it to yourself. You love Diaval, and Diaval loves you, I've seen it."

"Aurora, that's enough of that nonsense. I don't love Diaval, and he certainly doesn't love me. He has been a faithful servant, and maybe even companion to me, but really? No one could show romantic interest in me." Maleficent began to chuckle, like it was an amusing joke Aurora had told her.

"I've seen the way he looks at you Godmother, and you may deny it but I'm certain he knows he loves you."

"I think you just miss Prince Phillip." Maleficent said, hoping to divert her attention away from their topic.

"How do you know of him? I mean, we only just met." Aurora's ears grew red, and her cheeks burned.

"Oh, I know many things. He thinks you're very beautiful you know..."

"Well, he, I," Aurora stumbled for words, the burning in her cheeks intensifying. "Stop trying to change the subject."

"Is that what I was doing? I hadn't noticed..." Maleficent smirked, finally pinning up Aurora's hair into a delicate braid.

"Diaval _must _know he loves you, I'll ask him."

"No!" Maleficent said this a little too fast, and her goddaughter's head whipped around, a satisfied smirk on her lips.

"So you _do_ know about any... feelings you hold towards Diaval."

"He's been a good friend to me Aurora, that is all. I just don't want you to make him uncomfortable with such accusations."

"I'm sure, you know Godmother if you don't accept that you lo-" Aurora was cut off as a thunderous _boom _was heard and the ground shook. She could see flames licking the thorn wall, and as another catapult was released she fell to the ground.

"Godmother? What's happening?" Aurora asked, unaccustomed to the violence of previous years.

Maleficent looked up and a circling raven, and as he landed she flicked her wrist, transforming him into a man.

"Mistress, they have three catapults along the borders of the Moors." Diaval reported, nearly losing his balance as another thunderous sound was heard.

"Well Aurora, I do believe your father is here..."

Diaval glanced at Aurora, then back to Maleficent. His insides were twisting in a feeling he knew was worry, he didn't want to see either of them getting hurt.

"Diaval," Maleficent called him and he stepped to her side in a stride. "I want you to stay here with Aurora, keep her safe. And if you happen to hear, well, fighting going on, don't come out."

"Mistress? I won't abandon you-" He was cut off when Maleficent rose her hand, signalling him to be quiet.

"It is not up to you, I order you to stay away. Oh, don't fret, I'm sure we can keep everything, civil." Her silky voice drawled out, he bowed his head and she began to walk.

"Mistress, please be careful."

She turned around, a brief look of shock on her face before she covered it with her cold demeanour.

"I will try Diaval."

...

The catapults were just as easily taken out as the first time they tried to attack her wall, and her barrier from the human world easily repaired and manipulated. Maleficent was not without quarrel though, for even though their main weapons were destroyed there still stood strong the few dozen soldiers and their king on horseback.

"Maleficent! I demand that you return my daughter to me!" Stefan shouted, drawing his iron sword. The few standing with him followed suit, preparing themselves for an attack.

"And why on Earth would you believe that _I _have your precious daughter?" Maleficent replied, an evil smirk on her features.

"Give her to me now, _witch_, or I'll have your head on a stake!" He cried, boldly moving his horse till the tip of his blade was at her throat.

"Please, your threats do nothing to me. Without your walls and your guards you are nothing."

"I didn't have any walls, or any guards when I took those pretty, pretty, wings of yours." He mocked, touching his sword to her neck. She flinched back, a grunt of pain escaping as a small burn marked the spot where he touched her.

In return Maleficent lifted him into the air, throwing him back to the guards. He stood, and his eyes darkened. He picked up his sword, marching towards her. Maleficent raised her hands in an effort to throw him again, but was struck with an iron-tipped arrow instead.

She cried out, holding her shoulder. Pulling the arrow from her shoulders she longed to have her wings, if only to fly away, or knock the guards from their saddles.

Stefan was before her in an instant, grabbing a hold of her waist and pulling her into his sword. He held a sword at her neck, and a dagger at her back, preventing any escape attempts. He held the blades against her skin, taking a satisfaction from her as she tried to escape from the painful burns.

Maleficent felt nothing but hate for the man before her, he was not the man she once loved, that man was gone forever. Looking into his eyes she could see that, there was no light, only darkness.

"Give my daughter back to me now, or I will have the increased pleasure of killing you."

Maleficent stayed silent, struggling against his slimy grasp. He drew his blades back to run through her before they both heard a frantic yell.

"No!" Aurora rushed away from the wall, as her Godmother hadn't grown back the path she used to face her father.

Stefan relaxed his grip, pushing Maleficent away from him. She fell to the ground from exhaustion and her wounds. Diaval was by her side in an instant glaring daggers at the King.

"Oh Aurora, thank goodness you've managed to escape. When I found you missing I knew that she had kidnapped you." Stefan embraced his daughter, but she stepped back.

"She didn't kidnap me, I wanted to go with her, I want to live with her in the Moors." At Aurora's words many of the King's guards turned to each other, giving their neighbors odd looks and whispering amongst themselves.

"You don't mean that, she's cursed you again!" Stefan cried, moving to pull his daughter away again but she stepped back and ran to Diaval.

Diaval stood up and pushed Aurora behind him, his protective instinct kicking in.

"I'll always hold a place for you in my heart Father, but I hold a larger one for Godmother, I mean Maleficent."

"You don't know what you're saying, she's evil. You must come home with me right now, we can cure you of this new curse."

"It is no curse!" Aurora cried, drawing herself to her full height. "I love her, and I want to be with her!"

"She's a witch! She cursed you as an infant, you won't be safe with her. I'm your father, I can take care of you, keep you from evil such as the likes of _her._" Stefan spat the last word, like it was poison in his mouth.

"She's more my family than you ever will be!" Aurora shouted in anger, kneeling beside Maleficent. "Godmother, are you alright?"

Disoriented, but conscious Maleficent squeezed her hand and nodded. She felt strong arms wrap around her legs and her chest, picking her up. Diaval braced her head against his chest.

Stefan still stood in a shocked silence, watching as his _daughter_ of all things held the hand of his mortal enemy. They disappeared back into the Moors, and the thorns tangled back, the pathway disappearing.

He didn't know what to say, instead he mounted his horse and rode off without a word.

...

"Mistress?" Diaval whispered, laying down Maleficent along the stream.

"Godmother, please say something. I'm sorry he did that to you..." Aurora whispered, beginning to weep.

"I'm fine..." She groaned, sitting up with a grunt. "You two are okay?"

Diaval and Aurora breathed a sigh of relief, at the same time.

"We're fine Mistress, but I thought you said you would be careful..." Diaval joked, looking to Aurora who was giggling.

"Yes, well sometimes I think 'Diaval told me to be careful, so I'll go put myself in the worst situation possible.' and then I do it, just to annoy you." Maleficent jested back, smiling. She felt a strange flutter in her heart, but brushed it off as her heart pounding.

Aurora glanced between the both of them. Oh yes, they would most certainly need some prodding to admit their feelings for each other.

**A.N: Aurora's character is a little more feisty in my story, only because I think her sweet side would also need a spiced counter-part but that's about as bad as her dark side would get. **

**Please review, and thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter Three

**A.N: Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a grand time celebrating it, I had lots of fun last night. It was about twelve hours ago for me, we had a grand time, lots of drinks clinking together. Here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy it.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respectable owners.**

...

Maleficent was up and walking in no time, though it was clear she was still slightly uncomfortable. She would wince if she moved too fast, or Aurora would see her look down and search for a wound with her hands.

Aurora thought that it may have been physiological wounds she was trying to heal, but never voiced her thoughts. If her Godmother wanted to talk to her about it, she would.

Maleficent lifted her and Aurora into their tree, settling into a comfortable position, her Beastie cuddled beside her. She'd turned Diaval a while ago, telling him to go rest for an early morning scout.

It was Aurora's first time sleeping in a tree, ever, but she found it strangely _right_. It took only a few moments before her chest was rising and falling deeply and evenly, a soft slumber taking her.

Though she was exhausted, and all she wanted was sleep it would not come to Maleficent. She stared at the stars, not really seeing them.

A quiet caw made her head turn, a small smile gracing her lips.

"Into a man." Diaval transformed, sitting across from Maleficent.

"Mistress," He greeted, nodding his head. "Are you feeling well? You were... quite injured."

"I'm fine. You should be resting, I need to see what Stefan is planning."

"And I'll still be able to fulfill my duties."

Maleficent stayed silent for a moment, she was thinking he knew, but about what he could only wish to know.

"Why do you stay with me Diaval?" She asked, looking at her hands.

"I owe you my servitude Mistress, you saved my life."

"Surely if you wanted to leave you could of. I mean, it's nearly been two decades Diaval, plenty of time for you to just... fly away."

_'I stay because I love you, and I want to be with you.'_ He wanted to say to her, but instead he replied, "I grew to care for certain people around me, and if I flew away I would never see them again."

"Did you find a mate without me noticing?" Maleficent asked, a playful grin appearing as she looked up in interest. "And I've never met her? How interesting..."

"No Mistress, there is no mate. I meant friends, and well, Aurora." Diaval said, gesturing to the sleeping beauty.

"Yes, she has such a capacity for love, it's amazing really."

"What are we going to do now Mistress? Surely not attack the King."

"No, we cannot attack Stefan. I merely need to know if the Moors are in danger. He will want Aurora back, I need to keep her safe."

"What about you Mistress? You nearly died today."

"It's of no concern to you." She assured him, though it was clear she had her own doubts about the matter.

"But Mistress-"

"No Diaval, I won't discuss this with you anymore. You could of gotten yourself killed today, coming out with no weapons and in that form, you disobeyed me." She said irritated.

"You can't be serious, we saved your life. The King would of run his sword through your chest and that would be it, but instead of thanking us you choose to reprimand." He fired back, his human emotions taking over.

"You're right, you did save my life." Maleficent said, an angry flare in her eyes, "So now your debt has been repaid I give you freedom. You're free from me, go and enjoy it."

"No Mistress, that's not what I-"

"Into a raven." She flicked her wrist and he was transformed. He angrily cawed and pecked at her but she batted him away.

"Leave me you silly bird!" She said, turning her body away from him.

He flew away, but as he settled on a branch he made sure he could still see his mistress. She needn't to be watched, but he cared very deeply and he had to make sure she was as fine as she had said.

Diaval watched as her fingers delicately traced the places Stefan had touched her, then trailing to her burn sites before she stopped at the scars of her wings. Silent tears leaked from her eyes and Diaval's heart went out to her.

Nothing of that conversation had been planned, or wanted for that matter. She had sent him away, but he would not stop being her servant. She was his everything, without her the world would not be a place he would want to live in.

He watched Maleficent until her entire body relaxed into sleep, before he himself even thought of going to sleep.

At first light Diaval awoke, and remembering his mistress's wishes he spread his majestic wings and began to soar, heading straight for the King's castle.

...

Aurora stretched out her arms, her back arching as she let out a soft moan. Wiping the sleep from her eyes she smiled. She was in the Moors, her new home and beside her was her Godmother.

"Godmother? Godmother, are you awake?" She asked, her hair falling over her face as she leaned over to gently shake the resting fairy.

"Aurora, Aurora let me rest." Maleficent muttered, though she still grinned. "Go no further than the stream."

"Yes Godmother." Aurora bode obdiently, crawling to a nearby branch and swinging herself down.

Aurora had played with the many creatures in the Moors before, but today they rather greet her and in their own ways, welcome her home.

She was by herself for a little more than an hour, never crossing the stream or leaving the eye-sight of Maleficent.

"Oh dear," In her excitement Aurora hadn't heard her Godmother come behind her, "I fear it was easier to feed you as a baby." Maleficent said, a faint smirk still on her lips.

"It is okay Godmother, I'll find something to eat I'm old enough to find something to eat."

"There's nothing here for you to eat."

"Berries and nuts."

"Hardly a diet that will keep you healthy."

"My aunt's garden, if well maintained has many good fruits and vegetables to eat."

"Hm, I suppose. I'll see to it."

"Godmother, where is Diaval?" Aurora realized that in the whole of the time she had been awake she hadn't seen Diaval, or a raven, anywhere.

Maleficent sighed, looking down.

"Well if you must know, we had a fight last night. And I freed him from being my servant."

"Godmother!" Aurora exclaimed, looking at the faerie in exclamation. "Surely you didn't mean it, and surely he hasn't truly left you."

"He saved my life, as I saved his many years ago. His debt has been repaid."

"But you didn't mean him to leave you, did you?" Aurora pestered.

"I'll admit to you, I don't particularly like the idea of never seeing him again, but if that is what he wants to do with his new freedom then so be it."

"No Godmother, he would never leave you. You haven't freed him from anything, I know that in heart he is still your servant. Even you say he isn't he will never stop serving you."

"When did you get so wise?" Maleficent asked, smiling as she stroked Aurora's hair.

"Somewhere around my teenage years when I realized my aunt's had never raised a child before." Aurora replied, grasping onto her Godmother's hand.

Maleficent chuckled and looked to the skies, perhaps Aurora was right. Diaval knew her well enough to realize she hadn't meant any of the words she had said to him. Unless he truly did want to be released, otherwise she would never want to send him away.

"If Diaval wants to remain my companion, then I wonder where he is." She voiced her thoughts to the girl, for she was the only one who had the right to each and every one of them.

"Perhaps he went on that scouting trip you ordered him to last night, you said as soon as he woke. Raven's wake with the sun."

Maleficent looked up, the sun was nearly directly over their heads.

"Hm. It is quite late for him to not be back. Nearly mid-day, it doesn't take that long." Maleficent felt worry build within her, for whatever reason Diaval wasn't back.

"He would never leave you Godmother, I know that's what you're thinking."

Maleficent mulled this over, before looking back at the castle.

"Even so, he isn't back. I think I need to investigate the palace myself. Perhaps he's trapped in the rafters again, that happened a few years ago." The faerie tried to reason with herself, he was just in a tight spot, nothing serious but she should check just in case.

"No! You will surely be spotted, and after what happened last night? You're the most hunted being in the kingdom."

"I've always been the most hunted being in the kingdom Beastie, and this isn't my first time in the castle."

"Yes, the first time was yesterday. You would be going blindly through the palace, and you're easy to detect."

"I can't do nothing, last time he was trapped in the rafters he couldn't get out for an entire day."

"So what do you plan on doing? Walking into the palace, checking all the rafters there and leaving?"

"I haven't gotten as far as making a plan yet," Maleficent admitted, "But..." Her voiced faded away and she looked away from Aurora.

"I understand Godmother, you care for him. I could go to the palace, I'll disguise myself as a servant."

"A few nights ago that would of worked, but now everyone knows your face. You'll be taken, and I can't let you put yourself in that sort of danger."

"My face will not be shown, _please_ Godmother, what if he's in real trouble?" Aurora pleaded with her Godmother. "He isn't that stupid of a bird to get trapped in the rafters twice."

"Alright, but I am going with you. I nearly lost you, I'm not going to let you walk into danger alone."

"It's hardly dangerous Godmother."

"You're right, but maybe I'm just overprotective." Maleficent said, still wary not to say anything bad about her father, besides the truth of what had happened.

"It's dangerous for you Godmother, not for me." Aurora saw right through that, she knew the darkness her father held within him.

There was worry in both of them, but nobody voiced it in fear they would upset the other.

"Brave Beastie, we should begin walking, the trip is long without a horse."

"Well... we could take a hose."

"How? My horse was Diaval, and he's the one whom we need to find."

"There's a farm nearby... They have plenty of horses."

"Aurora we can't steal." Maleficent's eyes quirked upwards, though even the implication of it was amusing coming from Aurora.

"Not steal, borrow. We only need to make it halfway, then we can send the horses back."

"How do we know they would return to their owners?"

"They will, horses are loyal like that."

"One day in the Moors, and you're thinking like a rogue, how is that possible? Am I a bad example?" Maleficent replied lightly, after nodding in agreement at her goddaughter's plan.

"Oh Godmother, desperate times call for desperate measures."

...

Back in the palace, something a little more serious than being stuck in the rafters had happened.

Perching on an open windowsill Diaval had listened in on the King's conversation with the guards.

"Well we can't directly attack her again." The captain had said, "And obviously, trying to recuse the princess won't work if she doesn't want to leave."

"She doesn't want to stay there, not with someone as a evil as Maleficent." Stefan had insisted, his eyes darkening in rage. "She's done something Aurora."

"Your Majesty, is it possible that perhaps the princess really does love Maleficent?" A guard boldly asked, looking at the King. "It looked very sincere last night."

That guard received a backhand to the face, he straightened himself and stepped away.

"No, it isn't possible. She's my daughter, she can't love a witch."

Diaval wanted to swoop down and throttle the king for his unkind words, but restrained himself.

"Majesty, what if Maleficent grew to love Aurora, and Aurora Maleficent in her sixteen years of absence?" The captain wondered aloud, taking to the idea.

"Have you all gone mad! This is Maleficent, she is evil and wicked and she can't love anything. No!" He slammed his dagger into the table. "We will get my daughter back by force, for she is unreasonable."

The guards bowed their heads obediently, and as the King's rage simmered down so did his voice. He was paranoid that Maleficent's spies were around to hear their plan, and that was about the one thing he was right about.

Diaval knew, he _knew _he shouldn't have gone inside, but the temptation and the need to hear the King's plan was too much. If he brought back the information his mistress needed she could protect herself, and Aurora more accurately.

It took only a look to the ceiling and the King's shout of "The witch's familiar! Capture it!" To send any plan of escape out the window, which unfortunately for him, was immediately closed.

Squawking and franticly flying around the room, Diaval had to dodge many objects that had been thrown at him.

The flying dagger is what pierced his wing, causing him to drop from the air. Diaval tried to get away, even with a crippled wing but birds are not built to escape without flight. Tall, blurry figures loomed over him, and he recognized them as the King, his captain and a few of the guards.

"Men, we have a new plan." Stefan proclaimed, a dark smirk raising as he lifted Diaval with his rough hands.

**A.N: I'm on a bit of a roll here, and I believe this is the longest chapter of this story yet, so that's also exciting. So as you can see, or read, Diaval is aware of his feelings for Maleficent in this story, but Maleficent is not aware of her feelings towards him. She knows she cares, and don't worry, soon she'll know that Diaval is much more important to her than she thought. **

**Please leave a review, and thanks for reading! Also, a special thanks to those who've already reviewed, you're my motivation to try and post everyday! Thanks guys!**


	4. Chapter Four

**A.N: Alrighty, here it is. I'm really pumped for this story! Like I was brainstorming today, and I had this brilliant idea, but realized that it would have to be a few chapter from now. It was like this devastating but breakthrough moment!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respectible owners.**

...

After releasing their horse, and walking to the castle, Maleficent grabbed Aurora's arm. They pressed themselves against the castle wall.

"Wait. You need a disguise."

"I was going to steal one..." Aurora said, looking at her Godmother meekly.

"Aurora!" Maleficent scolded, "You're turning into a thief, you little beast."

Aurora rolled her eyes but smirked.

"Godmother, we're here to find Diaval."

"When did you develop _such_ an attitude?" Maleficent commented, raising her eyebrows.

"Godmother, remember why we're here?"

Shaking her head Maleficent let her magic flow, and Aurora felt a warm tingling sensation.

Aurora squirmed in discomfort. "Is this what Diaval goes through every time you change him?"

"I don't know, he's never said anything." Maleficent replied, a fond smile crossing her face as she thought of her companion.

Aurora looked down and took her hair in a delicate grasp.

"It's brown." She commented, looking back at the faerie.

"It's pretty, and don't worry that's the only thing I changed. That and your outfit."

"Alright, I'll go in, if I find Diaval I'll get him out."

"No, I'm coming with you."

"You can't, you're too easily spotted."

"Aurora, we're wasting time."

Aurora groaned and pulled at her now brown hair.

"You're going to get yourself killed!" Aurora whsiper-shouted, glancing at the passing guards.

"Shush, I'm the supposed caregiver, _I_ take care of _you_."

Aurora bit her lip nervously but nodded.

"Servants' entrance is this way." Maleficent said, taking Aurora's arm again.

...

Diaval rattled the chain attached to his leg. In all of his years with his mistress, she had never put him in a _bird_ cage. Or any cage for that matter.

"It's so uncanny, it almost looks like a normal raven. But I know that it's Maleficent's _dear_ servant."

Diaval angrily jerked the chain, glaring as well as he can in this form.

"I know you're the one who stepped in front of my daughter, you're the one who came to her rescue. I wish you were in your human form, then you could talk."

Diaval turned his head away from the cruel King. He had hated this man since the day Maleficent had told him of what he had done to her.

"Your Majesty." The captain of the guard bowed, and the King patted him on the back. Obviously in a good mood, and it was sickening to Diaval. "Why are we keeping the bird?"

"This is Maleficent's servant, she will come for him. And when she does, we'll take her."

Diaval listened intently, he was a spy after all.

"And what will we do with Maleficent, Sire?"

"Hm." Stefan glanced at the raven. "Nothing pleasant."

Diaval felt his heart drop.

...

"He's not here Godmother."

"No, I know he's here. I can feel it."

"Maybe you're just worried Godmother. We must go before you're caught.

"You go, I'll meet you outside by the servants' entrance."

"Godmother..." Aurora pleaded, trying to pull on the faerie's arm. "Please..."

"Go, I'll be there soon."

"I'm holding you to that."

Maleficent embraced Aurora, giving the princess a bad feeling inside.

"Goodbye Beastie."

Maleficent kissed Aurora's head, before pushing the young girl away from her.

Aurora turned back multiple times when she was walking away, but never went back to her.

Maleficent made sure Aurora was gone and safe before moving on. She began walking down the corridors evading the guards.

She knew that Diaval was there, and she knew that it was serious. But to her it was hopeless, she didn't know the palace and there were hundreds of places he could be.

She ducked into a side-corridor as two guards past.

"The stupid raven won't shut up, I wish King Stefan would just give the order to kill it..." Maleficent's head whipped around at the guard's conversation.

She crept out and tried to retrace the guards' steps. A faint cawing could be heard from the end of the hall.

She ran towards the noise, warily pushing open the door. Checking the room first, she ran towards the cage where Diaval was held captive.

Diaval gave a frantic squawk, but she took it as excitement or relief. A wave of her hand and the cage door flew open.

She reached for the chain connecting him to the cage quickly, crying out and whipping her hand away as it glowed the familiar red. Diaval looked down in disgust as he realized the chain was iron.

"Don't worry, I'll get you out." She promised, already wincing as she anticipated the pain she would have to sustain.

Slowly, she grabbed onto the chain again and urged her magic to break the chain faster. The pain radiating all the up her arm, and her face contorted in it. The chain snapped and she stumbled backwards.

Diaval jumped and flapped his wings, but one was still crippled and the wound ripped open.

"Into a man." Maleficent said, cradling her burned palm.

He transformed, his arm dripping blood. He saw her eyes widen and she rushed to examine the wounds.

"Oh, what did they do to you?" His mistress touched his arm, and let her magic heal him.

"No Mistress, you must go." Diaval's eyes flicked to her palms which were marred and burned. "King Stefan is expecting you."

"What?" Maleficent's head whipped around, expecting to see the King there.

"The King! He's waiting for you!"

Realization hit Maleficent like a brick, and she took Diaval's arm. They left the room and began to hurry through the halls, she began to whisper to him, ducking into the same side corridor.

"Aurora is waiting, by the servant's entrance. Down the passageway, two lefts and a right, down the stairs and out the cellar door."

"Mistress?" Diaval asked, not liking how this conversation was sounding.

She pulled out a piece of his hair, and a pendant appeared in her hand. She tied the hair around the thread, looking up at him regretfully.

His breath hitched as she nearly closed the space between them, slipping the pendant over his neck.

"This allows you to change whenever you wish, to whatever you wish."

"Thank you, but isn't there a better time to give this to me Mistress?" Diaval asked, quite worried about the look in her eyes.

"Maybe," She whispered, "Aurora waits, go to her. If Stefan is waiting for me, he'll discover you two, I can lead him away."

"Mistress no! I can't let you, I mean I can't abandon you..."

"Diaval please, I know I freed you but I ask now, _please_, obey this command."

Diaval had never heard his mistress beg before, and she was begging to him.

"I'm not surrendering myself, I'm merely taking a harder escape route... There's no guarantee that I won't join you."

"Mistress, how am I supposed to take Aurora away, how am I supposed to leave you?"

"Take her kicking and screaming, just get her away from here."

"I-I can't."

"What can't you do? If you come with me you could get captured too and then who will look after Aurora?"

"You can't do this to me." He pleaded, hearing the clink of armour in the distance.

There was pure resolve in her eyes, but also hurt. She took a deep breath, this maybe was the last time she would see him.

Maleficent's mouth crashed into his, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Diaval melted into the kiss, gently placing his hands on her waist. His mistress moaned against his mouth, and closed her eyes.

Maleficent pulled away, caressing his jaw.

"I love you." She told him softly, before slipping out of the passageway and looking behind her as she jogged away. Diaval stood frozen in place, he couldn't move. His body went numb, he was operating on auto-drive.

He felt the familiar tingling sensation and he realized he was changing himself for the first time, into a mouse.

Scurrying down the corridor he tried to paid no mind to the guards rushing through the halls, the King leading them. But he stopped dead in his tracks as he heard Maleficent cry out, and continue to scream. Diaval longed to transform into a ferocious animal to protect her, save her, but he remembered the silent promise he had made her to take care of Aurora first.

He transformed back into a man before throwing open the cellar doors and whipping his head around frantically looking for Aurora.

"Aurora?"

"Diaval? What are you doing here? And you're a man."

"Aurora, come along we must go."

"No, where's Godmother?" Devastation took over her face, and she fell to her knees. "No... No, no, no, she told me she would come for me." She began to weep, thinking the worst.

"She was alive the last I saw of her Aurora, and she made me promise to keep you safe. We have to go."

"No, she may still come." Aurora's weak voice said, tears streaming down her face.

"Aurora, she's not coming. We need to go." Diaval reasoned, lifting her up.

He transformed himself into a horse, nuzzling her. Still weeping into his mane she let him take her home.

Both of them wanted to die in that moment.

**A.N: Yup, I dropped all those bombs in 1660 words, sorry, but not sorry. I hope to have another chapter up tomorrow. Please review! Also special thanks to those who've followed, favourited, and reviewed!**


	5. Chapter Five

**A.N: Okay first of all, THANK YOU. I got the most reviews ever on the last chapter, and that may seem a bit pathetic because it was four reviews, but hey it's my personal best for this story. **

**And just a heads up, angst is pretty much my forte so fluff comes less often than angst. Doesn't mean every chapter there's a big injury or a fight, just that I find it better for plot points. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners. **

...

Maleficent woke up in darkness, and the first thing she noticed was the numb pain... everywhere.

Quickly she sat up, gasping at the sudden surge of more intense pain. Despite the efforts, the faerie couldn't remember much of what had happened.

Then, as if in fast-forward, the memories came back to her.

_Aurora... Cage... Burn... Diaval... Kiss... Stefan... Blades... Chains... Pain._

She'd run away, hoping to get further and further away from Diaval as she could, but still attracting the guards' attention. She'd heard them coming, there was a blade... in her shoulder. Then iron, seeming to burn everywhere on her skin.

Maleficent's memory was hazy after that, she remembered screaming and getting dragged, then nothing.

Stefan must of brought her here. She was probably in the dungeons, or a special room prepared just for her, how special.

Diaval had been bait, and yet the faerie didn't regret a singular moment of it. He was safe, Aurora was safe, and he had promised her to keep it like that.

The words '_I love you' _crossed her mind, and she felt a lump form in her throat. That wasn't fair to Diaval, she could very well die here and it would make it only more complicated for them.

But she did, she loved him, so much. Maleficent tried to touch her lips, but they were jerked back down by the shackles attached to her wrists.

The faerie angrily began to struggle against her restraints, her mind rationalizing that if she pulled hard enough the chain would snap.

"You can't break it." Maleficent's head whipped up, now adjusted to the darkness she could see the figure standing in the corner. "And you can't use your magic."

"Iron doesn't drain magic." She replied, glaring at the form. "It just burns faeries."

"Perhaps, but this does." Stefan replied, taking out a vial of liquid.

"That's a small amount to keep me at bay." Maleficent spouted back fiercely, surprising herself by keeping her voice strong.

"Oh, this is a small amount of the larger quantity we have." He said, sauntering over to her.

"You're not going to be able to make me take that."

He grabbed her chin in his hand, jerking it to face him. Maleficent struggled and jerked, but his grip was fast. Stefan poured the contents into her mouth, tipping her head up to force her to swallow.

"I think I'll manage."

Maleficent choked, but the contents went down her throat, and she felt the energy drain from her body. Stefan threw her down, looking disdainfully at the creature before him.

"What did you do to my daughter?" Stefan asked, gently turning her head towards himself with his fingers.

"Nothing. She wanted to come back with me." She replied, not surprised when she received a backhand.

"No, you put a curse onto Aurora."

"The only curse I placed on her was the one I placed on her as a baby. I stopped it."

"I don't belive you. I think your curse failed, and so you kidnaped and cursed her again."

"No." Maleficent insisted, lifting herself up again. "I love Aurora, like my own daughter."

"You lie!" Exclaimed Stefan, kicking her hands out from under her. "You can't love."

"I loved you, biggest mistake of my life but hey, it's possible."

"Come now, we both know you can't love _anymore_."

"Here's the thing Stefan," Maleficent defiantly sat up again. "You ruined me, but that was seventeen years ago. I've been pieced together bit by bit, I'm still broken but I'm not ruined anymore. You didn't beat me Stefan."

There was a silence in the room, the only sound Maleficent's heavy breathing.

"You've said that you love Aurora, and maybe I believe that you believe that it's true."

"It is true." Hissed Maleficent, trying to kick Stefan away, only to find her legs were shackled at all.

"Does Aurora love you?"

"Yes." She replied boldly and surely.

"How'd that happen? You cursed her, how'd you come to _love_ her?"

"The cottage she lived in, it was close to the Moors. I've watched over her, her entire life. When she was fifteen I took her into the Moors, she came everyday without fail. When she first saw me, she thought I was her faerie godmother with my shadow."

She immediately wanted to take her words back, she was telling the truth because it seemed to keep the King calm, but she had said too much.

"Shadow? You mean the crow."

"Raven." Maleficent instinctively corrected.

"Or man, or wolf, or horse, or mouse, or whatever you wanted of him. Was he your whore too? Whenever you had _urges_?" His heavily accented voice which once comforted her, now outraged her.

"No!" Maleficent cried, lunging at the King, "After you no one could touch me!"

"You saved him, but he wasn't with you when we caught you. _I_ think, you sacrificed yourself to save him. You were no where near a place you could escape, heading away from it more so."

"Maybe I was just lost, and my servant got out by himself."

She received a slap, the faerie grunted as her head whipped around.

"Don't lie, your hands were scarred and burned when we took you. And we both know he's more than a servant to you."

"Lose your interest on your daughter already Stefan? Maybe she's better off with me."

"Quiet witch! You speak to a king."

"You're no king to me." She repeated the same words she had told the king before him, but this time it held more meaning.

"So you've done nothing to my daughter? She simply _loves_ you?"

"That's right. She was here with me, she left with Diaval."

"What do you mean?"

"While we were here, I sent her to wait for me, Diaval's taken her home." Smartly saying so Maleficent smirked.

"Her home is here, with her family."

"Family?" Maleficent laughed coldly, "She identifies her family as the three idiots, Diaval and her Godmother. She identifies _you_ as a father she's never known."

Stefan grabbed her neck and shoved her into the wall, leaving her alone in the dark room, he didn't know if she unconscious or not but she lay unmoving so he left.

...

"No, Diaval we have to go back..." Aurora wept, trying to get away from the raven-man as he held her back.

"Aurora, no! We can't go back!" Diaval's heart broke feeling the child go limp in his arms.

"How could we do that?" She sank to the ground, "How could we do that? We left her there!" Aurora's devastation came in waves.

"Aurora, do you think that was easy for me? That was the hardest thing I've _ever_ had to do!"

The child went quiet, besides her soft weeping. Diaval knelt on his knees, his hands reluctant to touch the girl as his mistress had done. Hesitantly he stroked her hair.

Aurora turned her body and hugged Diaval, taking him by surprise. He'd raised the girl, yet in this moment he didn't know what to do.

"Please get her back Diaval, _please_." Aurora was weeping into his shoulder, and Diaval realized he too was crying.

Moving the hands from the young princess's back he touched his lips and remembered her taste, and her touch. Those three fatal words, words he had longed to hear for years, escaping her lips.

"I will. As I kept my promise to her to keep you safe, I swear to you I'll get her back."

Aurora's weeping quieted, and she drew herself back.

"You love her." She declared, looking into his eyes.

"Very much." Diaval replied, gently wiping away her tears.

"She loves you too."

"She told me so, she kissed me, before drawing the guards out."

"Godmother kissed you? And told you she loved you?" Aurora's face lit up slightly, a shadow of smile gracing her lips.

Diaval nodded, a small smile also forming.

"Do you promise to stay in the Moors? If I am going back into the castle, I need to know that I am still keeping my promise to Mistress."

"I promise, on Godmother's wish and on your's I promise." She said sincerely, intending on keeping it.

Diaval helped her into the tree, patting her hand before transforming himself into a raven and flying off, going to save Maleficent. And even if he died, he would rise and continue to fly.

**A.N: Again, thanks for the reviews. Means a lot, and we're about to get some Diaval/Maleficent romance and fluff! Excited? I am, very excited. Thanks for following, favouriting, and reviewing! **

**Whoever can guess what'll happen next can give me a sentence and/or a paragraph to base chapter seven off of! :D **


	6. Chapter Six

**A.N: First of all, like always, thanks for the support. Secondly, my school break is over tomorrow so this daily update thing is probably going to stop. I'll try to keep my updates as quick as possible, but like I said, it probably won't be daily. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners. **

...

Diaval, in his human form, searched the palace in quite a panic. He felt like he had checked everywhere, his mistress was no where to be found.

In the back of his mind he thought the worst, if she wasn't being held prisoner, then was she even alive?

Diaval couldn't take that thought, it wasn't fair. She couldn't tell him that she loved him, kiss him, and then _die_.

It wasn't fair.

...

"Tell me how to get my daughter back."

"I don't know! If she wants to come back she can!"

Maleficent recieved another kick to her stomach, her arms buckled under her.

"Stefan, the only thing I care about is her happiness!"

Maleficent heard the sound of a blade being drawn, and she tried to shrink away. She would never admit it, but the continuous torture had worn her down to the point of fear.

"You've still taken my daughter Maleficent..." He growled, taking her arm in his.

"Stefan... You don't want to do this."

"I think I do, I've wanted to do this for a very long time."

The King slowly cut away her sleeve, stroking the inside of her wrist. In her weakened state, he was able to slip more of the poisonous liquid down her throat.

Her body lost it's struggle as the vile liquid took her energy.

The blade entered her skin, cutting and burning her at the same time.

"You haven't mutilated me enough?" The faerie mumbled, trying to draw her arm in.

"Shh... I'm almost finished. You don't belong in this world, in your world, you don't belong anywhere." His voice almost sounded soothing, had he not been carving her arm. "But don't worry, you won't be in any world soon."

He finished, leaving her on the floor once again. With the slam of the large wooden door Maleficent sighed in defeat, knowing of the death she would soon be granted.

...

Diaval had traveled this palace many times, but he never felt so lost. Turning a corner he found himself smashing into a guard. His helmet was knocked off, allowing him to get a clear view of Diaval's face.

"Hey, I know you!" Exclaimed the guard. Diaval scrambled up, looking around for a weapon. He took a small stone figurine from a table, smashing it over the guard's head.

"Sorry." Diaval said, taking the guard's armour. "But my mistress needs me more than you need this."

A few moments later, Diaval was moving around the palace successfully. With his disguise, no one stopped him.

He stopped and leaned against a pillar, sending his fist into the stone.

"Mistress, I swear if you're dead..." He murmered, pushing himself off of the wall.

Perhaps he would check the lower castle corridors again, just for safe measure.

Trying to look as casual as possible, Diaval walked down the stairs leading to the under castle.

He sulked down the dingy dungeon floors, feeling sorry for those entrapped in the cruel king's prisons.

Wait, he hadn't seen this side corridor before. Diaval's heart raced as he pushed open the wooden door. The _lack_ of light took him by surprise, there weren't any windows in this room.

"He's not going to kill me himself?" He heard a weak voice say, obviously in pain.

Diaval approached the voice, his eyes adjusting. After recognizing the form and the voice he rushed to her side, putting a hand on her arm.

Maleficent flinched back, a new burn spreading on her arm. Diaval looked down at his hand, disgusted with himself for hurting her. He pulled away the armour, pushing it to other side of the room.

"Mistress, it's me, Diaval."

The light from the opened door casting dark shadows onto her already hollow face. She pushed only her head up.

"Diaval...?" She whispered, not believing it was true, that it was merely a hallucination.

"I'm here," Diaval replied, watching as she pushed herself up. "We need to go."

She nodded in agreement, gesturing with her handcuffed hands to her legs.

Diaval nodded, crawling along the floor until he reached the discarded armour. There was a sword he knew, and when he drew it it felt heavy in his arms.

"Mistress, don't move."

He swung the heavy sword down and it clashed with the chains along her legs, causing sparks. It didn't break the chains, but weakened them, and it took a hard pull from Diaval to snap them.

After her arms were free he tried to help her up, but she couldn't stand.

"Why haven't your wounds healed themselves?" He asked, gently taking her palms in his hands. She flinched back, her wounds still sore and sensitive.

"Moonroot extract I think, it drains magic. He gave it to me."

"Alright." Diaval scooped her up, carrying her out of the room into more light. She wrapped her arms around his neck. His heart stopped as he saw the extent of her injuries. "I'll kill him. I swear to God..."

"Diaval..." Maleficent moaned, her arms falling limp by her sides. "Could we just go home?"

"Of course."

Diaval shifted her arm onto her chest, staring quizzingly at the bareness and the bloodiness of it.

He slowly turned it over, a curious part of him wanting to see the wound. The sight of the wound made him see red, and he tensed.

"Diaval?" Maleficent asked weakly, and he snapped out of his rage.

"Right, let's go home."

As he carried away his mistress, he couldn't get the bloody word '_Evil_' carved into his mistress's arm out of his mind's eye.

...

Diaval stroked Maleficent's face gently, he watched her as she peacefully slept. Her magic hadn't returned yet, so her wounds hadn't healed. Diaval hoped it would return before she saw the message on her arm.

"Is she any better?" He drew back his hand quickly, smiling at the young girl.

"No," he sighed, "but she will live. She'll need more rest to completely heal though."

"Oh, it's okay you know. I've been watching you for a while." She gestured to his hand, softly placing it on her Godmother's forehead.

"Oh no, she wouldn't want me touching her."

"She kissed you didn't she?" Aurora argued, smiling at the devotion in his eyes.

"She thought she was about to die Aurora."

"Well I don't think she'll mind, but if you insist..." Aurora mischievously smirked, sliding off the tree.

She wasn't surprised when she peered through the bushes and found Diaval stroking her Godmother's face again.

...

Maleficent was still sleeping by the time the sun went down. It worried Diaval immensely, she'd been brought to the Moors just as the sun was _rising_.

"You're sure she's alright?" Aurora asked, also getting worried.

"I've examined her wounds, she shouldn't have anything life threatening. I think she's just exhausted, mentally and physically. Also, without her magic she doesn't have the energy levels she's used to."

"You should sleep, Godmother won't want you staying up for the sake of her."

"No, I need to be here when she wakes. You sleep though, your Godmother will kill me when she wakes up and finds you awake."

"Fine." Aurora huffed, moving away from the faerie and the man. She curled up into a ball, and before the sleep world took her she mumbled, "Love you two."

Diaval's head whipped towards the girl, but she was already sleeping.

"Come on Mistress, wake up."

He gently kept urging her, holding her hand as if it was his lifeline.

He closed his eyes, keeping her hand in his. His eyes slowly opened when he felt a cold touch wrap around his hand.

"You look worse than I do..." Maleficent mumbled, a grin spreading along her face. Her green eyes shone, and Diaval had never felt so relieved.

"Oh I highly doubt that Mistress." Diaval replied, feeling like he could breath again.

"Are you insulting me?" She jested, her smile widening.

"It's hard to compete with my beautiful self."

"Perhaps you shouldn't think so highly of yourself. You'd make a fine dog."

Diaval scowled at the memory, but it wasn't a true scowl.

"So," Maleficent's eyes flicked towards their intertwined hands. "Are we...?" Diaval got the picture.

"Only if you want Mistress. But you should know," Maleficent felt her heart beat faster, in... nervousness? "I never got to reply, and I do love you. I've loved you for a very long time."

"Really?" Her eyes lit up in hope, and her heart calmed. "Because, if you don't want to-"

"No, no Mistress. I know my strange human feelings, quite well. I love you, and I'll shout it out for the Moors to hear. That is why, I am remaining your servant, no matter how much you tell me I'm free. Because I'm not free, you've taken my heart."

Diaval leaned towards her, but hesitated before going any further.

"You silly bird, kiss me." Maleficent said before letting her mouth hit his, again.

Maleficent forgot about her past, her wounds, her betrayal, it was just them, together. Both knew that's how it should be.

**A.N: Happy? I know I am. Thank you for your kind reviews, and all your support. A special thanks to DancingKitKat for reviewing on every chapter posted, you rock.**

**More fluffyness coming up in the next chapter!**


	7. Chapter Seven

**A.N: Thanks for all your kind reviews, and I've got to say guys, I'm impressed by all your Harry Potter references. I'm a huge fan myself. So, today I decided to indulge myself and write another chapter, because I really couldn't wait. Also, I've gotten a stomach bug and so I have a lot of extra time on my hands. Only thing is, is that as I'm also anemic without any food and nutrients in my body I'll probably be asleep all day. We shall see though. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners.**

...

Elation was too light a word to describe how Diaval felt. He felt like even in his human form, he could jump a hundred feet in the air.

Maleficent smiled at him, untangling their hands and staring at the burns.

"I haven't healed yet?" She mused, feeling her cheek and wincing back at the pains of bruising, "That's odd..."

"You mentioned an extract of some sort Mistress, it hasn't worn off yet." Diaval supplied for her.

"Moonroot. It's very rare, except in the Moors. I wonder how he came upon it."

"How long does it usually drain magic?"

"With that potency?" Maleficent thought it over, "A fair amount of hours. He gave me more, before he finished and left. That was enough to take away most of my energy as well, because my magic hadn't even returned yet."

Diaval sat quietly, not sure what to say. He wanted to know what his mistress had endured to have such brutatily show on her body, but she was a very walled-in person.

Maleficent stayed silent in thought. She was making a timeline in her head, not wanting to have an entire day taken away from her.

Mid-day she began her trek to find Diaval, an hour perhaps, before sunset she arrived. The sun was setting when she ran from Diaval. After that her timeline was jumbled and messed, with no windows to speak of in that awful room she couldn't know.

"How long did he have me Diaval?"

"Pardon Mistress?"

"How long did Stefan have me?"

"Aurora and I arrived at the Moors only a little while after the sun had set. I immiediately went back, and it took me till the sun was raising to get you back here."

"Oh," the faerie said, almost gingerly. "That's only a few hours. I was afraid I had lost days in that place."

Diaval looked at his mistress, his head cocked slightly, like a raven. She was a curious being indeed.

"When will you be able to heal yourself Mistress?"

"Not long now, in fact very soon. I can feel my lesser injuries already beginning to become lighter."

"I think you were given a double dose Mistress, for you should of healed in your sleep if my mind serves me correct."

"You're right I probably was. I should of healed by mid-day today." She said lightly.

Diaval watched as Maleficent watched her injuries heal themselves, a satisfied smirk on her lips. Her gaze was going down her arm, before he came to his senses and intervened.

"Mistress you really don't need to see that." Maleficent looked up at him, a hard curiosity clearing beginning to build.

"And why is that?" She responded, her eyes flickering down onto her arm. "This is the only place he used a blade I want to see what he did."

Diaval caught her wrist before she could see any more, causing a wince from the faerie. He'd frightened her, although he knew she trusted him, abrupt contact still scared her.

"Diaval, let go." She growled, and he did, regretfully.

Diaval had wrapped her body in a robe, to keep her warm he told himself. Though he knew it was to keep the hideous cut hidden.

She flashed him another smile, patting his arm. "It can't possibly be that bad Diaval, but thank you for... caring."

Diaval bit his lip, watching as she slid her sleeve up. Maleficent's smile faded, but only for a moment, she had the same smile on her face in a second, only it was most definitely false.

"It isn't that bad." She told him, quickly pushing her sleeve back down. "It'll be gone in a moment's time."

"Mistress..." Diaval began, looking down and then back at her face.

"It's fine Diaval, just leave it." She turned her head away from him, taking a deep breath. "It could of been worse."

Diaval knew it could of been worse, he was very thankful it hadn't been, but it had been pretty bad.

"You've gotten Beastie to sleep. I'm glad."

Diaval turned his head towards the sleeping maiden, and he grinned at how peaceful she looked.

"Yes, after she let into her exhaustion she fell asleep in no time. She was quite distressed Mistress, but very relieved at your safe return."

"She surely knows I did it for her, and for you."

"Mistress, please don't ever do that again."

A smirk formed on his mistress's mouth and she quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Well since you asked I guess I'll just _have_ to do it again."

Diaval smiled at her but it was not a full smile.

"Is there something wrong Diaval?" She asked him, giving the raven-man an odd stare.

"No, nothing's wrong Mistress. Everything's perfect in fact."

His smile widened for confirmation. She still had some doubts.

"Are you sure? You seem distressed."

Was there anything _wrong_? There were so many things that were wrong. A king was hunting his mistress and seeking to take away what Diaval thought of as his child. Maleficent had been tortured till the point she knew she was to die.

It hurt him, it hurt him so much. It hurt him when Aurora had screamed and cried into his shoulders, it hurt him when Maleficent had screamed in pain and he'd kept running. But she didn't need to know that.

"Just tired is all Mistress." It was partly true, he hadn't slept since the night of their argument.

"Oh, yes. You should sleep, I'll be fine. I imagine that two days of not moving will cause a bit of stiffness, so I really should stretch." Maleficent smiled at him and moved to stand.

She cautiously let herself slip from the tree, but as soon as her legs made contact with the ground below, they gave out from under her.

"Mistress!" Diaval cried out, quickly lowering himself as well.

"I'm fine Diaval. My legs just weren't used to carrying my weight."

"You're sure you're alright?" He asked while helping her up.

"Only a bruised pride. Sleep well Diaval."

The faerie bid him goodnight, seeming to rely on her staff more than usual. Diaval obediently nodded, changing into a raven to sleep.

Maleficent wandered her beloved Moors for a time, she had no desire to sleep. Apparently she'd gotten a full day's worth of it anyway.

The muscles in her back extended when she tripped over a rock, the ghost of her wings still trying to catch her. Maleficent sighed, eighteen years and she still couldn't get over her wings.

The faerie idly wondered if her wings were still in the palace, if she had been close to them the entire time of her torture. Perhaps she would ask Diaval if he had heard any chatter about it, or had seen them in his missions for her.

Maleficent stopped, realizing she had wandered into the portion of the wood most Moorfolk chose to avoid, for the dark creatures that lurked inside.

Curiosity took over the faerie, she wanted to see the rumoured 'dark creatures' that lived in _her_ Moors. She was a queen after all, shouldn't she know exactly _what_ she ruled?

She walked until she came to a lake, a very beautiful lake at that. She sat on a rock and stared out into it, she could see herself very clearly in the reflection. The bruises and cuts which had distorted her face before were gone.

A glimmer of water caught her eye, and her head turned in that direction, tipping her head in curiosity.

The water became many different colours of light, and it began to move on it's own, shaping the form of a person.

Soon a girl was standing in the spotless lake, draped in a white dress.

Her long amber hair clung to her shoulders, and went all the way down her back. The colour of the sky was only a close rival to the blueness of her hairs, and the fairness of her skin only a close rival to Maleficent's.

She was beautiful indeed.

"Hello." Maleficent bid her, tipping her head down slightly. "I am Maleficent. What do they call you?"

"I know who you are, Queen of the Moors, and I have no name. Only the names I wish for myself to have. Today I will be called Giselle." Her voice was very silky, almost hypnotic.

"Hm," Maleficent tipped her head up regally, turning it towards the lake. "Are there more of you, from the lake?"

"Yes, we are watchers, and shapeshifters. We have no true form, only what we wish to be."

"That is interesting indeed," Maleficent drawled, "And what is it that you watch?"

"Everything. Lately, we have taken to watching _you_. Your life is interesting to us, so many complications that we don't need to meddle in it."

"So you are meddlers as well? Exactly what do you do to meddle?"

The girl smiled, and it was then Maleficent knew these were wicked creatures indeed.

Giselle, as she called herself, swirled her delicate fingers over the water. The water rippled and followed her movements until a new image relflected along it's surface.

Maleficent stood and looked at the image, a perfect eyebrow raising itself.

There in the water, was Diaval and Aurora sleeping in their tree. Diaval had taken his raven form, his head tucked under his wing as he slept.

Maleficent couldn't resist the smile tugging at her lips as she watched them.

"Handsome man he makes no?" The smile faded away as the faerie looked back up, at the girl in front of her. "He is a shapeshifter too, but he can only take one human's form."

"That's correct. He is my companion."

"Oh but a little more than a mere companion. No use denying it, remember that we've seen."

The faerie's lips tightened into a tight line, before she turned and began her descent back to the light part of the Moors.

"Oh, where are you going?" The creature pouted. Maleficent turned her head to look at it, and when she turned it back the thing was in front of her.

"I'm going back to where I've come from."

"But there you barely have any fun. You find us fascinating, don't you want to stay a little longer?"

"No, there is enough fun and happiness where I am from. I doubt this will be the last time I see you though, now that I know you exist." Maleficent lied, she did not want to come back here.

The faerie moved past the girl, crossing into the woods.

"Oh no, this certainly won't be the last time you see us." The girl mumbled before liquefying back into the lake.

...

"Where did you go last night?" Diaval asked her the next morning, as they strolled beside each other.

"Oh, I just went for a bit of walk. My legs were more stiff than I imagined." She smiled at him, putting an arm on his shoulder.

"Yes, your tumble from the tree was an account of that."

Maleficent playfully smacked his chest, smiling as she turned in front of him.

"I won't be easy to love." She told him, almost as if saying_ 'Are you sure you want to do this?' _

"Mistress, I've loved you for years, I'm not looking for easy I'm looking for you."

She smiled brightly, caressing his cheek.

"As you know, human contact makes me... wary. But I'm willing to try." She offered her hand, and Diaval took it gently. He kissed it before letting their hands drop, still tightly clasped.

"Besides, I know you'll never hurt me." She told him, lightly placing her head on his shoulder.

"Never in a million years Mistress."

**A.N: Well, at least I'm not doing too bad.**

**On the note of this chapter, I've taken the common legend of a siren and revamped it slightly, but it is still technically a siren. And guess what sirens do, they lure in men. Excited, scared? Well I hope you are.**

**Thanks for reading, please review!**


	8. Chapter Eight

**A.N: Hello my beautiful readers, I'm glad to say that I've only slept ****_half_**** the day away. Only, I went to the doctor and one thing lead to another and now I'm on IV drip because I can't keep anything down. So that's unfortunate, but I have lots of time! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners. **

...

"Oh! You two are so cute!" Aurora chirped, a bright smile on her face as she ran towards her godparents.

Maleficent's cheeks turned a slight shade of pink as her and Diaval not-so-discreetly let go and separated.

"No, no! Don't stop!" Aurora cried, a small pout on her pink lips.

Maleficent, finding her bearings, smiled at the girl and lead her to the hill's top.

"Come, sit with me." She offered, and the blonde obeyed.

"Don't you want to be with Diaval?" Aurora teased, turning her head towards the faerie.

"Quiet yourself, Beastie. Your hair is a mess, have you brushed it at all?"

"In my life Godmother, have you ever seen me brush my hair more than twice a week?"

"Living under those three idiots? No, I haven't. But, you live here now, and your hair will be well taken care of."

"Please Godmother," Aurora drawled, rolling her eyes. "I hardly think it'll make a difference."

"Your hair is too pretty not to take care of." Maleficent said, a brush appearing in her flattened palm.

"Oh," Aurora exclaimed, taking the brush from her hand. "Godmother it's beautiful."

The brush was golden, with crystals along it's base. The bristles were the softest Aurora had ever felt, it took her breath away.

"You see? Give it here, I'll brush out your hair."

Aurora complied, handing the brush back to her godmother. As Maleficent untangled her hair Aurora watched the Moors.

It was as beautiful as it was magical.

The grass seemed greener, and the sun brighter, but maybe that was only Aurora.

Her gaze moved, a contented smile on her lips.

"Godmother, your kingdom has beauty beyond compare. It's like a dream."

"I know Beastie, it's brighter with you here." Aurora smiled brightly, but the smile faded slightly.

"I miss my aunts Godmother."

"Then I'll arrange for a visit."

"Really? Just like that?" Aurora turned her head in a wondered amazement, but turned it back when her godmother gently pushed her chin back.

"I only wish for your happiness Aurora."

"And Diaval's..." Aurora slyly finished. "Ow! What was that for?!" Maleficent had pulled her hair. She turned her body fully around, a disbelieving look on her face. She grabbed her head.

Maleficent smirked.

"Oops, must have pulled on that knot a little too hard. That's what happens when you don't brush it."

Aurora huffed, her eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Your hair is done, run along."

"Godmother, you pamper me. Probably more than they would at the palace."

"You're a princess here Aurora. Never forget that."

"But you're a queen."

"I claimed that throne for myself, but really I am only a protector."

"The Moorfolk respect you enough to bow to you."

"They are frightened of me Aurora." Maleficent smiled sadly, stroking Aurora's hair.

"No, they respect you. I bet your hair is beautiful Godmother, may I try and braid it?"

Oh how easy it was for the little beast to so lightly leave one subject for another. She lifted the faerie's heart and spirit.

"Of course, I find it increasingly hard to deny you these days."

The girl smiled and chuckled, an almost golden glow coming about her.

Maleficent reluctantly unwrapped the leather from her head, letting the hair inside fall down her back. Few had seen her hair, many less touched it.

Aurora was amazed at the sight. It was more beautiful than she had thought, and it framed her face perfectly.

Aurora gently began to braid it, but even after she finished the length was still down most of her godmother's back.

"Look at you two..." Diaval said, stumbling up the hill. He stopped when his mistress turned her head towards him, a wide smile on her face.

Diaval cleared his throat, finding the words catching in his mouth.

"Doesn't she look pretty?" Asked Aurora, jumping up and running towards Diaval. "Look she did my hair too!"

"Indeed, I see you've learned from her how to fix such beautiful hair."

"Mhm, pretty isn't it?"

"Oh most definitely." Diaval replied, patting her head.

The young princess looked from her godmother to the man, a knowing smirk on her face.

"I think I'll go explore the Moors a bit. See you two at sundown?"

Maleficent nodded her head, gracefully standing up.

"You may go everywhere you wish," Maleficent told her Beastie, "Except into those woods there. Do you understand?"

"Yes Godmother, I understand." Aurora said, though her head turned in curiosity.

"Aurora," Maleficent said sternly, "I want you to promise me this."

"Alright Godmother, I promise." Aurora was confused, what possibly could be dangerous in the Moors?

"Go enjoy yourself then."

Aurora nodded and ran down the hill, stumbling a bit but able to keep her footing.

"What lays in those woods Mistress?" Diaval asked, moving to stand beside her.

"Creatures not worth telling of."

Diaval furrowed his brow in confusion, but also curiosity.

"Shall we take a walk then Mistress?"

"Isn't that what we were doing before Beastie interrupted us?"

"I suppose."

The two began to walk, making idle small talk.

"I went to spy on Stefan today."

Maleficent stopped dead in her tracks, her head turning dangerously towards Diaval.

"You what?" She said lowly, her eyes narrowed. Diaval knew he was in trouble.

"He plans to come back to the Moors, to attack the wall until you come out again."

"Are you crazy? You went back there after he'd captured you?! You could of been recognized!"

"I was looking out for Aurora! He wants to take her away, and kill you! Surely knowing his plans will help." The man defended, hoping to sway her.

Maleficent took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm.

"Yes, it helps. Thank you Diaval." She forced a grin and began to walk again.

"So you're not mad?" He asked reluctantly.

"No, I am very angry. I'm merely boiling it down."

"Oh." Diaval meekly said keeping his head down as he walked beside her.

"I can't lose you, Diaval." She said after a while in silence, "You were my rock when I was alone, before Aurora. If you hadn't been there, I sometimes wonder if I would of thrown myself from a cliff."

It was Diaval's turn to stop in shock.

"You've thought of throwing yourself off a cliff?" He asked, his eyes wide.

"If I was to die, I'd want it to be in the air, experience that heart pounding moment one last time."

"That's not the point, you've thought of taking your own life?"

"Diaval, you've known me longer than most, you knew how far gone I was when I placed that curse on Aurora."

"Mistress..."

"It's in the past Diaval, and I only ever wondered at it. Like I said, you kept me from succumbing to my darkness." She said this so lightly, it disturbed Diaval.

"Well then I am glad you saved me so many years ago."

"Even though I've turned you into a dog, numerous times?" Maleficent asked jokingly, switching the subject to something lighter, more fun.

"I could of done without that, but all in all I think it's been a pretty good run. A much longer run than any other raven has had."

"Though I really wish that sometimes you would learn to keep you vanities to yourself." Maleficent said, again in a joking manner.

"My beautiful self could not be contained forever Mistress."

Maleficent smiled and laughed, shaking her head slightly.

"I think I'll bathe for a while Diaval, perhaps you could keep an eye on Aurora."

Diaval bowed his head obediently, turning away from the faerie. He felt himself being transformed into a raven, and so he flew away. Off to find the wandering princess.

...

"Well what do you think are in the forbiddon woods?" Aurora asked Diaval, as the two sat and ate peaches from a tree in a nearby farmer's garden.

"Your Godmother said that there are creatures in there not worth discussing."

"That makes me even more curious!" Exclaimed Aurora, sprawling herself out on the ground. "But _I_ can't go inside, I gave Godmother my word."

"What are you suggesting Aurora?" Asked Diaval, noticing the glint in the girl's eyes.

"You don't need to go _into_ the forest, just fly over it!" She said, an excited sparkle in her eyes. "I just want to know what's in there."

"Flying over it won't give you those answers. Only more curiosity, and I doubt Mistress will condone it."

Aurora huffed but nodded her head.

"Guess what I did today." She prompted, turning over onto her stomach.

"What did you do today Aurora?"

"I visited the most _beautiful_ orchard. There were blossoms everywhere!"

"Mhm..." Mumbled Diaval, only half listening as the sun's warmth lulled him to sleep.

Aurora sighed and finished her peach, rolling her eyes as the man slept. Looking at the sun she decided she had some time before sundown, she could go to the stream perhaps.

...

"Is this how you watch over Aurora?" Asked Maleficent, smirking as she prodded Diaval with her staff.

Diaval opened an eye, and upon realizing what was happening scrambled up.

"Mistress! Uh, I _was_ with Aurora. But then uh-" He stumbled for words, feeling like a complete buffoon.

"I know, she told me as much." Maleficent smirked, her eyes playful instead of hard.

"Is it sundown already?" Diaval asked suddenly, desperately trying to change the subject.

"It is." Maleficent replied, looking up at the skies.

"So Aurora's...?"

"Back in the tree, she was rambling about how 'pretty the blossom orchard was,' I had to get out of there."

Diaval chuckled, finding himself able to breath again as the spotlight was turned away from himself.

"Diaval, did you ever see my wings in your visits to the palace?"

Diaval knew better than to lie, but he couldn't tell her while looking into her eyes. He was a coward like that.

"Yes Mistress, in the King's... trophy room. He talks to them like they are you."

"Oh." Maleficent got out, she'd known the answer, but some part of her was still bothered by it.

"I would of told you sooner, but-"

"I understand Diaval." She cut in, patting his arm before walking away.

"Mistress..." He called out to her, releaved when she turned instead of ignorng him.

"I'd gladly show it to you one day."

"You'd risk your life, to only show me something lost eighteen years ago?" She asked incredulously.

"Of course, so that you could rest peacefully."

The faerie smiled, her eyes brightening again. Diaval felt accomplished in every way.

"I suspect that day won't be soon, but I thank you for the offer."

"I said anything you need Mistress. You need your wings." Diaval smiled back at her.

Maleficent walked slowly back towards him, stopping mere inches away.

"You've been my wings for a very long time," Maleficent started, taking his hands in her's "and with you I don't need the ones stolen from me."

It was then their mouths slowly came together in a gentle kiss. That gentle kiss was deepened, and soon the faerie, and the man, were on the ground. Maleficent's arms wrapped around his neck, and his gently rubbed her hips.

Somewhere between kissing and rolling down the hill, Diaval stopped.

"Are you happy Mistress?"

"Happier than I've ever been before."

"Should we go back to Aurora?"

The faerie debated it in her mind before answering.

"She's sixteen, she'll be fine alone for a while."

Diaval smiled, before pulling her back into his mouth.

**A.N: And... Another filler chapter. I just didn't want to introduce another protagonist, then have it do something directly in the next chapter, and totally forget about my first protagonist. **

**Also, there was lots of fluff in my story, not a lot of romance. So with nearly all my 'fluff and romance' juices burned out, expect an angsty next chapter. **

**Please review, and thanks for reading! **


	9. Chapter Nine

**A.N: Thanks so much for your amazing reviews you guys! You all are really helping me with my writing and inspiration. As promised, this chapter will have just a 'wee bit' of torment for Maleficent and Diaval, and of course, Aurora.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners**.

...

Diaval had fallen asleep in his human form, and though it was enjoyable to find Maleficent snuggled and sleeping on his chest, he was stiff.

He was also reluctant to move, in fear of waking her up.

It was early, the morning mist still lingering in the air. The sun was only just peaking from under the mountains.

Turning his head, Diaval realized that Aurora wasn't in the nest. Panic surged through him as the most terrifying scenarios ran through his head.

Remembering his position, he gently lowered the faerie's head onto the nest's surface. She moaned, but didn't wake. Diaval gently placed a kiss on her forehead before sliding down the tree trunk.

"Aurora?" He whipped his head around, searching for any signs of the blonde. "Aurora where are you?"

He ran throughout the Moors, hoping to find the young girl before having to wake his mistress. A wallerbog approached him, frantically pointing to the border-wall.

Diaval thanked the creature before running towards the thorns. When he came closer he realized the thorns were uncoiling and moving, an enchantment Maleficent had placed upon them, should they ever be attacked.

"No!" He heard a girl's voice cry out, immediately recognizing it as Aurora's.

Diaval transformed himself into into a wolf, charging towards the voice.

Aurora was kicking and fighting as a guard tried to pull her away, and Diaval felt a sense of pride at seeing her fight back.

He made himself known, a dangerously low growl erupting from his throat, this is what parents did, they protected their fledglings.

The guard stopped trying to pull her away, looking up at the beast only a few feet away.

Diaval crouched down, baring his teeth at the guard. No fear was in Aurora's face, but relief. She knew that the wolf in front of her was her Godfather.

The guard threw down the young princess, and she cried out in pain as she hit the ground.

Animalistic rage brewed inside Diaval, and he lunged at the guard.

Howls of pain could be heard throughout the Moors.

After he was finished Diaval transomed back into a human, he gently knelt beside the still fallen beauty.

He picked her up, cradling her head as he had done to her godmother days earlier.

"He wanted to take me away." She whispered into his chest, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Are you hurt?"

Aurora nodded, turning her head towards her arm.

"My arm really, really, hurts." She told him, as he set her down near a rock along the stream.

Diaval examined her arm, finding it smeared in blood and bruises.

He tore away a piece of his shirt, dipping it into the stream. Carefully, he dabbed away the blood until he could see the actual wound.

"Your Godmother will heal these soon, but for now I'm just going to clean it."

Aurora nodded, and watched as Diaval bandaged it.

"What were you doing by the border?" Diaval pressed, sitting on a rock next to Aurora.

"I woke up, and the wall was moving. I wanted to see what was happening, so I went to explore. I was just going to climb a tree, I don't know how I got over the border, I was just there."

Diaval nodded, mulling over the oddness of her situation.

"Shall I wake Mistress?"

"No, no, I'm fine."

"No, you're not."

"I am." Aurora insisted "It's only a little cut, Godmother went through so much more."

And suddenly the image of Aurora, with the same wounds as Maleficent had endured crossed his mind, and Diaval lost whatever food was in his stomach.

"Whoa, if the blood makes you queasy then I can change my dress. Godmother gave me a few dresses. They're beautiful."

"No, it's not that. I'm fine, you go up into bed again. I don't want to see you out until sunrise, tomorrow."

"Is that really necessary?" Argued Aurora, looking at him in disbelief.

"Yes Aurora, now go." Diaval said sternly.

Aurora, looking quite annoyed, stomped towards the tree. She crossed her arms and pouted, turning her body away from Diaval.

Diaval sighed a breath of relief, not at her anger, he had never experienced adolescent anger before, but at her safety.

He sat with his head in his knees, thinking of the past hour.

_'I killed a man today'_ He thought, a pang of guilt surging through him. _'I killed a man, who may have had a wife, a child even.' _

But then Diaval remembered _his_ child, the one in their tree, who had a gash in her arm and was bruised up and down. The girl who had been attacked, that man had been _attacking_ her. Diaval had only protected her.

When Diaval looked up again, he caught a glance of a maiden in the woods. She was watching him, a white dress flowing behind her. Her hair was let down, cascading down her back.

She turned, and began to walk back into the bulk of the forest. Diaval, feeling an overwhelming sense that he needed to follow her, stood.

"W-wait!" He stuttered, stumbling towards her.

The girl stopped, and turned towards him, a grin of pleasure filling her face. Diaval's breath was knocked away at her beauty, but she was not the most beautiful maiden Diaval had seen. That was his mistress.

His mistress. She had told Aurora to stay away from this place, so shouldn't he also stay away? He should go back, and make sure Aurora was well taken care of.

Turning, the girl in white began to run away from him. She was very elegant, her bare feet barely making a sound against the earth.

Diaval fought the urges but in the end, gave in and ran after her. Diaval stopped when he came to a lake, a lake a clear as crystal.

The girl was crouching beside the lake, and when he came into the clearing she looked up and smiled. Her fingers swirled in the water, causing delicate ripples.

"You've come." The girl said. Diaval almost stumbled backwards at her voice, for it had such a beauty to it, it threw him off balance.

"You expected me to?" Diaval replied, gulping nervously. Her voice was almost... singsong.

"But of course, I lead you here." She stood and began to walk towards him, her grin widening.

"What do I call you?" He asked, taking a small step backwards.

"I call myself Giselle."

...

Malefient woke slowly, a soft moan escaping her lips.

"Godmother? Are you awake?"

"Hm?" She moaned and turned herself over to face Aurora. As soon as she noticed the blood on her dressmthe fog of sleep immediately lifted from her eyes as she scrambled up.

She cradled the girl's arm in her own, her eyes widened and horrified.

"Aurora's who's hurt you? What happened?"

Maleficent removed the makeshift bandage, which she thought looked a lot like a piece of Diaval's shirt.

"I was near the border, a guard caught me and tried to take me away."

Maleficent's eyes went cold, as an infuriating fire ignited within her. When she found whoever did this she would-

"But then Diaval came, he was a wolf. The guard threw me, and a rock tore my arm. Diaval, he, he killed him."

Oh. Diaval had protected her, and she had never wanted to kiss the man more. It was then she noticed his absence.

"Where is Diaval?" She wondered aloud, looking for him.

"He cleaned my wounds, and sent me off to stay in the tree." Maleficent smiled as Aurora scrunched her face in discontent. "I haven't seen him since."

Maleficent nodded, and took Aurora's arm, slowly healing it.

"He's probably just thinking, he has nearly no experience in killing, it gets to him. The last time he killed someone, it was... it was protecting me. He was nearly silent for most of the next week."

"I fought the guard, but I couldn't get him off, and then Diaval came. I didn't mean for any of it." Aurora cried, distress finally coming over her.

Maleficent pulled the girl towards her, soothing her down.

"Do you want to walk for a while?" Maleficent offered, forcing a smile.

Aurora snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Diaval sentenced me to a day in bed. Which is unfair to say the least... I think I'll just, go back to sleep."

Maleficent chuckled and nodded, running a brush through the blonde's hair before lowering herself from the tree. She'd changed her normal attire back to the light brown robes of her youth. Her hair was let down, reaching her waist in length.

The faerie wandered throughout the Moors, telling herself she wasn't looking for Diaval, but in reality that's what she was doing.

She saw him emerge from behind a nearby tree.

"There you are..." She said, smiling as she came towards him. "Aurora told me what happened. Are you alright?"

Diaval tipped his head up in recognition. There was no warmth in his eyes, and Maleficent almost did a double take.

"I know you don't like, taking a life."

Maleficent gently placed her hands on his shoulders, brushing away a wisp of hair over his eyes.

Still, Diaval showed no warmth, or love for that matter. Suddenly, Diaval grasped her waist, quite roughly, and pulled her into a kiss.

"Oh!" Maleficent pulled away from the kiss, and Diaval.

"What, you don't like my touch anymore?" Maleficent gave him a curious look, how odd it was for him to act like this.

"No, no, of course not. Just, that was a little rough..."

Diaval quirked an irritated eyebrow, staring into her green eyes.

"_So_ sorry. I never meant to discontent you _Mistress_." He spat the words, like poison in his mouth.

"What's gotten into you?" Maleficent asked, equally upset.

"Nothing, nothing's gotten into me. Just that today not only did I turn myself into a _wolf_, I did it to protect that little blonde twit who was stupid enough to wander over the border."

"Hey! You don't get to talk of Aurora like that! You love her!" She cried, staring in disbelief at him.

"Right, of course. Your wish is my command _Mistress_."

"Alright, that's enough! I know you're upset, but you have no right to talk to _anyone_ like this! So you should go, go and cool down and when you're ready to act like a man, come back!"

The faerie didn't see it coming. Diaval raised his hand to her, and in one fluid motion struck the side of her face.

Maleficent cried out, and she hit the ground hard. Her hair was around her face, and a few tears escaped her eyes. A bruise was forming she knew, but a moment later it was gone. It didn't make it hurt any less.

Diaval transformed into his natural form, and flew away from the fallen fae.

Maleficent stayed on the ground for a while, before standing and wiping away her fallen tears. She watched the shape of the raven as it flew away, no anger in her eyes only heartbreak and hurt.

"Godmother!" Aurora burst from the trees. "My father's men are throwing fire at the wall. The enchantment is wearing off, they need your help reactivating it."

With one more sorrowful look towards her raven, Maleficent forced a grin and nodded, following her Beastie towards the wall.

**A.N: *Hides* Sorry... I couldn't resist.**

**Thanks for reading! Please review!**


	10. Chapter Ten

**A.N: *Remerges* Right, so, let's get on with our story. Thanks so much for those who reviewed, it's a real pick me up seeing your kind words. **

**Note on this chapter, 'most' of the words in italics are Diaval's memories or point of view, but the occasional word is the regular emphasis italics are usually used for.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners. **

...

_"I call myself Giselle."_

_"I haven't seen you around the Moors before."_

_"The need for me to... come out of my home has been somewhat lacking for the last couple of years."_

_"Oh, why have you lead me here then?" He remembered himself becoming frozen in place, but by what he did not know. Perhaps fear, or whatever kept him at bay now..._

_"You're the key ingredient to our recipe." The girl smiled at him, this time showing wickedness instead of beauty. _

_"There are more of you then?" _

_"My sisters of the lake. We watch, for entertainment purposes mostly. Maleficent was quite an entertaining thing to watch. Then, suddenly she got this notion that all could be well, she could have a happy _boring_ life with you and the princess."_

_Diaval had realized that he was in serious trouble then, and had tried to escape from it. _

_"No, no, no." Giselle had cooed, appearing mere inches away from him. She grasped his hand tightly, despite his struggles. "Even though you're not a human man, your emotions and your form allows us to take control, no matter how hard you fight it."_

_And suddenly Diaval's struggles had ceased, but not at his own will. _

_"Now, I'm sure you'll figure this out as you go, but I find you handsome so I'll tell you what is happening. We're in control now, to the point you have no free will."_

_Diaval tried to open his mouth and say something, but found that just as his feet wouldn't move his mouth wouldn't open. _

_"Go, we can watch from here."_

_And then his feet had begun to move, and Diaval suddenly wanted nothing more than to stay still. For the sheer sound of Giselle's and her apparent 'sisters' giggling laughter was enough to tell him of the terrible things he would do._

_..._

"What's gotten into you?"

_Nothing! Mistress, nothing's gotten into me, this isn't me! Leave, storm away, I've aready handled you roughly shouldn't that be enough to just make you _leave_._

"Nothing, nothing's gotten into me. Just that today not only did I turn myself into a _wolf_, I did it to protect that little blonde twit who was stupid enough to wander over the border."

_Oh God, he didn't mean that! He didn't want to say that! Diaval thrashed in his own mind for the umpteenth time that day._

"Hey! You don't get to talk of Aurora like that! You love her!" His body said nothing, but inside Diaval was screaming.

_Of course he loved Aurora! She was basically his own child! You know that Mistress!_

"Right, of course. Your wish is my command Mistress."

_Please, just go! Turn your back to me, or turn me into a mealy worm or a dog or anything! Just go!_

"Alright, that's enough! I know you're upset, but you have no right to talk to _anyone_ like this! So you should go, go cool down and when you're ready to act like a man, come back!"

Diaval couldn't imagine what he would do next, and neither did she. Before he even saw himself raise his hand, the back of it was stinging.

Letting out a cry of pain his Mistress fell to the ground, her hair falling over her head.

_No! Oh God no! What did you do?! How could you?!_

Diaval didn't know if he was shouting at himself, or at the demons who had taken over his body, but either worked.

She stayed on the ground, and he could tell from her sharp intakes of breath that she was crying. He had _made_ her cry, by striking her. He would of done anything, _anything_ to stop that from happening. Anything to avoid harming Maleficent.

_I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry... Please, get up. Get up, fight back. I don't care if you harm me, please... _

Before he knew what was happening, he was in the air, flying away from his mistress as she wept. Diaval wanted to plummet from the skies, he'd done something he'd vowed never to do. What was next? Were these demons going to make him strike Aurora? Bruise her face as he was sure he had done her Godmother's?

He landed, changing into a human as he did so. He could do nothing but glare at the woman, no creature, waiting for him.

"Well that was quite a show wasn't it?" She said, her singsong voice carrying to where he stood, "I didn't expect anything like that to happen, but the opportunity was there..."

Suddenly he fell, and he felt his mouth become less sticky. He was in control again.

"How could you make me do that?! You evil, vile creatures!" Diaval began to shout, standing up from his kneeling position. Tears were threatening to fall, he had lost _everything._

"It was amusing, now be quiet. You will see, her life will get much more entertaining." Giselle reasoned, her blue eyes piercing his.

"She's not a theatre act to be watched and manipulated!"

"Just be grateful that that is all we need you for. We could of been cruel, we could of made you beat her until her breath was nearly gone, then make her watch as you did the same to that child-princess. She wouldn't have raised a hand towards you, her emotions gave us, or shall I say you, an advantage."

Diaval took a few calming breaths, forcing himself to stay calm. On this inside though, he was devastated. Totally devastated, and his heart was breaking. Maleficent had been through too much, how cruel she must think him.

"What do you plan to do with me now?"

"Well, you are quite entertaining as well, so... how about you stay with us?" She suggested this so lightly, like they were great friends. It boiled Diaval's blood.

"Death seems much more painless."

"Perhaps it is, but then you couldn't watch your lover as she falls back into depression. Maybe one day, we'll release you from our holds. Then you could go back to her."

Diaval, biting his lip in anger, stiffly nodded his head.

"Splendid! Come, sit with me."

Diaval begrudgingly complied, and when he sat down he felt Giselle's slim fingers on his arm. He pulled away in disgust, giving her a dangerous glare. The siren simply shrugged and continued to swirl her fingers in the water.

...

_She was back in the palace, and she knew that it was Stefan who had her, but how she couldn't be sure._

_Her body was in a constant ache, the iron burning into her skin. The skin that was still sensitive from countless beatings, and burnings, and torture. Her captor would be back soon. _

_And then he was, he was kneeling down next to her, painfully gripping her arm. The blade was drawn, and she could feel him cut into her flesh._

_"No one loves you Maleficent, you're incapable of love, or being loved. Did you really think_ I _loved you?" The man sneered, giving one final jerk to her arm to finish off his message. "This will serve to show you exactly what you are, _evil._" _

_The door was opened and she could see the bloody message, bold and jagged against her skin. Tears escaped her eyes, but she forced them to look up, and see what she expected was to be Stefan's sneering face. _

_But it wasn't Stefan, staring down at her was the one man she thought would never hurt her._

_Diaval. _

Maleficent jerked awake with a cry of anguish. It was just a dream, she wasn't being tortured... not physically anyway.

"Godmother? Are you alright?" Aurora's soft voice came from beside her, and she forced herself to relax.

"Yes Beastie, I'm sorry I woke you up. Go back to sleep." She soothed, trying to guide the girl down into a laying down position.

"Godmother, it's okay to talk to me."

"How could I talk to you about something I myself don't understand child?" The faerie asked truthfully, she didn't understand, but that didn't mean she wasn't broken.

"Well we could talk, and figure it out together." The girl suggested, half-smiling at her godmother.

"You needn't worry your head over my problems."

"They're my problems too Godmother, I know it hurts..."

"Such the effects of a broken heart."

"Diaval would _never_ purposely mean to harm you. There must be some explanation for it."

"Aurora, there is an explanation." Maleficent paused, her mind reeling and her heart aching. "Diaval was upset, and I angered him with my words, and he lashed out."

"No, that isn't it." Aurora insisted, her own pained expression washing over her face. "He would never hurt you Godmother, never in a million years."

Aurora hadn't realized it, but that simple statement was like a slap to the face to Maleficent. The faerie remembered the day only a few sunrises ago, a happy day where they had been exploring their newfound love... Was that to be her fate? To love a man destined to eventually break her heart?

"Aurora, Diaval is as much a man as he is a raven. And men get unexplainable emotions, do unexplainable things. And some men, choose not to act on those emotions, but they do slip up. In the end Diaval was just too much of a man, and he slipped up at the wrong time."

"I know in my soul Godmother, that there is more a reason than that for him to strike you."

"I will not kid with you, child. If Diaval were to return, it would lift my heart a little. But I could never forget what had been done, I would always be afraid he would hurt me again. Maybe, had I not been rebuilding an already broken heart it would be easier to move on, but..." Her voice faded mid-sentence her eyes sadly drifting away.

"I understand Godmother. But if there was more, would you forgive him? Forget it and reason it was for good cause?"

"_If,_ there was some alternative reason, yes I would forgive and forget. But maybe my destiny is to have my heartbroken by men."

"I refuse to believe that. He was so devoted to you, that can't change over a few hours."

"Like I said Aurora, emotions cloud men's logical train of thought. And in the end, Diaval was just too much of a man."

"Your destiny is not to always have a broken heart Godmother, I know so."

A sad smile crossed the faerie's lips, and she stroked Aurora's hair.

"I know Beastie. Now, let's go back to sleep. You visit with your aunt's in the morning."

Aurora nodded, shuffling until she was comfortably laying down. Unknowing to the light sleeping enchantment her godmother had placed on her.

Because Maleficent needed Aurora to sleep, her Beastie could not hear her breaking on the inside. So while Aurora slept, Maleficent did her grieving.

Sob after sob wracked her body, and after that, she lay awake staring at the stars. She thought of the years Diaval had served her, and realized she really couldn't live without him. Beastie or no Beastie, she needed Diaval.

Maleficent's eyes went dead, and she simply lay there replaying the last eighteen years in her mind. For her heart was beating, and her lungs were breathing but she was not living.

**A.N: So there's this chapter, not exactly the happiest of them all. For those of you hoping that all would be set right, well... you'll just have to wait to see what happens. **

**And, most stories depict sirens as only luring men to their deaths, but as I revamped _my_ version of a siren, these ones can also control men. **

**Thanks for reading, and please review! (I'm trying to reach 35 reviews for this chapter :D )**


	11. Chapter Eleven

**A.N: Hello my lovely readers. So, time for another chapter... I won't disclose the certain mood of this one but trust me, it's going to be intense. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners. **

...

"Aunties, _please_..." Aurora begged with a smile on her face, trying to make her three aunties stop mussing her hair.

"Oh but it's so different. When did you start wearing it in a braid? Not that it's bad, it's really pretty, but it's just... different." Thistlewhit asked, a blush creeping onto her cheeks.

"I like it, Godmother does it for me every morning."

A frown appeared on Knotgrass's face as the faerie was mentioned.

"I don't know how you came to call her 'Godmother.' Or how you came to _live_ with her."

"She's my faerie godmother, that's how." Aurora quipped back sharply, she understood their difficult relationship but when her godmother needed defending she would step up.

"Yes, well I just think it's odd. The faerie that cursed you, becoming your faerie godmother." The pixie chuckled, shaking her head like it was all a silly affair.

"Well I'm _happy_ for Aurora, if she's happy I'm happy." Thistlewhit argued back, patting Aurora on the back.

"I never said I wasn't happy for her I just think it's odd!"

"Oh you two! Just stop! Now, are you all going to be living in the Moors again?"

"We never thought about it Dear, I suppose we could..."

"I certainly wouldn't stop you." All four of the women turned their heads as new voice entered the conversation.

Maleficent strode towards the group, regal as ever. Aurora's face lit up into a grin as her godmother came closer.

The three pixies' eyes nearly bulged out of their skulls, Maleficent had greatly changed her wardrobe, it was less dark. They remembered vaguely that this is how she used to dress, but that was a long time ago.

"It isn't nice to stare." Maleficent commented, her face a picture of cold beauty. "As I said, I wouldn't stop you from living amongst the Moors again. You did have _some _part in Aurora's upbringing."

"What do you mean some?" Flittle asked, "We sacrificed sixteen years to raising her." It wasn't meant as a malice, and that much was clear, because the pixie looked thoroughly confused.

"And I doubt she would of made it past three weeks had me and my servant decided against interfering." The Queen of the Moors remarked, a shadow of a smile crossing her face.

"As I said, Godmother's been looking after me since I was a baby."

"Well, I-I-" Knotgrass stuttered, not knowing what to say.

"Though, Aurora was a lot easier to feed as a baby... That's been one of the most challenging aspects in keeping the little beast here."

Aurora giggled and briefly Maleficent smiled, and the pixies were still confused.

"Challenging? Please, Godmother exaggerates. I find food by myself fine, she just thinks I have the stomach of a horse."

"You do." Maleficent remarked, brushing a strand of hair behind Aurora's ear. "I'll let you all continue your visit. If you choose to live in the Moors again, I welcome you."

"Th-thank you." Thistlewhit muttered, bowing to Maleficent as she thought she should.

"Of course. Even a queen cannot deny the Princess's wishes."

And with that Maleficent left, bowing her head towards each of the pixies.

"Princess?" Knotgrass asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Not of the human kingdom, I don't want to ever step out of the Moors again." Aurora explained, scrunching her face in distaste.

"Why? Your father really wants you back."

"Because of what he did to Godmother, and that's all I'm saying on the matter."

"So you're a princess here?" Thistlewhit asked sheepishly, becoming very awkward.

"Yes, isn't it wonderful? Godmother asked me if I wanted to wear a crown, but I thought it was the silliest thing she'd ever suggest!" Aurora giggled, turning herself around.

"You look very... happy." Knotgrass concluded, her upper lip tight.

"Oh I am!" Aurora said happily, though she knew there was a sadness in her heart.

"And well taken care of. Where did you get such a fine dress?" Flittle said, gesturing to Aurora's salmon coloured dress.

"Godmother gave it to me. Shall we walk?"

"Of course." All three pixies said at once. They had determined that Maleficent did care for Aurora and was perfectly capable of taking care of her.

...

The next morning Aurora woke before first light. She could barely see, much less navigate herself, but for her godmother she would try. She had some investigating to do.

She moved her head towards her Godmother, checking to make sure that she was still asleep.

Aurora carefully and slowly moved away and lowered herself from the tree.

"Forgive me Godmother, I promise I'll be back." She whispered, before disappearing into the fog.

...

Diaval had let his tears fall freely watching his mistress. She'd thrashed in her sleep, before waking with a scream. What she'd been dreaming of he could only guess.

What had broken his heart completely, was her conversation with Aurora. Is that what she thought had happened? He had hit her because she angered him?

No matter what she did, he wouldn't ever strike her. She could of mocked everything aspect of his life and himself, he would still never hit her.

Aurora was right, his wise little fledgling could see.

The next night was the same, except she didn't cry out. Aurora remained asleep and Maleficent was able to find sleep again, and so Diaval was left alone to watch them sleep and think.

"So is this all you do?" He spoke for the first time in hours, just when the sun had begun to appear. "You don't need to eat?"

"No..." Giselle said, almost puzzled.

"I'm hungry I need something to eat." Diaval said, "And not worms if I can't change into a raven."

They'd taken his pendant, one of the only things his mistress had ever given him.

"Oh..." Giselle seemed unaccustomed to such a thought.

"Fine, I'll find you something to eat. You're staying here though."

She pecked his lips quickly, to which he disgustedly jerked his head back from.

Diaval watched her, confused as she stood and began to walk away. As soon as she was gone, he tried to stand and walk only to find himself bound to where he sat. He struggled with all his might.

He didn't know how long he sat there and struggled, it could of been hours or fifteen minutes. He suspected somewhere inbetween based off the sun.

Diaval's movements ceased when he heard twigs snapping as the siren came closer.

"Diaval?" It wasn't Giselle, it was _Aurora_. How had she even found him?

"Aurora? Aurora what are you doing here?" It couldn't possibly be her, it was a trick by these sirens. Surely they could shapeshift.

"Looking for you. I searched the entire Moors, and then it was just these woods and I thought that Godmother would forgive me for coming here if I had a good reason."

Diaval whipped his head around frantically. She could come back at any moment.

"Hurry now, free me."

She nodded and knelt in front of him, beginning to work on his bindings.

"What is this made of? I can't untie your feet." She was struggling with the bindings on his feet.

"I don't know. Aurora you have to know, I never wanted to hurt your godmother. These _things_ were controlling me." Diaval tried, using his now free hands, to help her with his feet.

"I know, and what things?"

Just then a hand shot out of the water, grabbing onto Aurora's foot. She gave a shocked scream and grabbed onto his hands.

"Those things." Diaval said, frantically holding onto the girl's hand.

Aurora kicked her other foot, managing to free her captured one. She scrambled backwards, still clutching her godfather's hands.

"Aurora, the pendant which allows me to change forms is somewhere along the rocks."

"Okay." She said quickly, rushing to where he indicated.

It took the princess only a few minutes to find it. Tossing it to Diaval, she noticed the forms of... girls forming with short bursts of light in the water.

Diaval, turned into a raven, was able to escape his bindings. With a frantic squawk he turned back into man, gesturing for Aurora to come to him.

When she did she threw her arms around the raven-man. Suddenly all the relief flowing through her at once. Diaval returned the hug, you can imagine his delight in just seeing the girl again, let alone being able to embrace her.

"Godmother and I have missed you so, you must explain to her what's happened."

"I know. God, I never wanted to hurt her. I feel as though I've messed things up forever."

"You have." Both their heads whipped around, finding Giselle blocking their entance to the path.

"But, I'm quite sure it would make it very entertaining if you returned to her, broken and begging for forgivness."

He could hear the other siren's response in the background, eagerly agreeing. Giselle was the obvious leader.

Diaval pulled Aurora protectivly closer to him, his animal senses dulled but working in this form, he knew they were surrounded.

"So you'll let us go then?" Diaval asked, jutting his head up in an attempt at showing himself strong.

"Hm, no 'us', just you. She stays."

Diaval hissed at her response, and Aurora tensed.

"No. I'm not leaving Aurora here with you creatures."

"Then we can have both of you. With your disappearance though, Maleficent will surely choose to end her life..." Giselle taunted, circling around them.

Diaval discreetly drew Aurora further away from him, hoping she would understand. She did, but she didn't want to.

"And if I refuse?"

"She can't go and blab to Maleficent, so you either leave her and escape yourself, or we can take both of you. I doubt you want to take the latter."

"If I leave her, what will you do?"

"We won't kill her if that's what you're thinking."

You would think Aurora would become wary at his words, but she had complete faith that Diaval would do what was best.

Diaval was in a state of panic. Yet as jumbled as his thoughts were, he was able to formulate a plan.

His body moved as Giselle circled, but kept Aurora facing forward. As soon as Giselle was the furthest away from her as she could get he acted.

With a hard shove forward Aurora bolted into the path. She felt bad for running without knowing that Diaval was behind her, but he obviously wanted her too. For the most part, she was very obedient.

Giselle gave a strangled scream as the girl ran, and immediately went to chase her. Diaval was fast to act though, and he wrapped his arms around her waist. He flung the siren towards the lake, and began to run after Aurora.

Diaval could make out the shape of Aurora ahead of him, her golden hair whipping around to glance behind her.

Her dress was torn, and her arms were scratched but she looked unharmed.

Aurora faltered, a small smile gracing her lips as she saw Diaval rushing towards her.

"Keep going, I can see the end of the wood." He all but shouted, grabbing the beauty's hand and pulling her along.

He knew that the creatures were pursuing them, he could basically feel their touch on his arms.

As soon as she was sure the faerie could hear, Aurora shouted for her.

"Godmother! Godmother!" The girl shouted, tripping over her own feet. They were literally two feet away from the end of the woods.

Diaval felt her weight being ripped away from his grasp, and he dug his feet into the ground in an effort to stop. Aurora screamed and tried to pull away from Giselle's grasp.

Aurora grabbed onto the branch of a tree, crying for Diaval to help her.

Diaval tried to free her, but couldn't. Giselle only wore the mask of a human girl, she was a monster and a strong one at that.

A sudden burst of energy threw Diaval and Aurora onto the ground, and _blasted_ Giselle and any of her following 'sisters' back ten feet.

Diaval scrambled up, and quickly helped Aurora to her feet. She gave a sigh of relief, making the short trip out of the forest.

Her arms wrapped around her godmother as soon as she was out, her breath jagged and panting.

"Godmother you heard me." She exclaimed, embracing the faerie tightly.

"Of course my dear, I told you not to go into those woods." It wasn't a scold, more like an exclamation of relief and fear.

Diaval suddenly was hesitant to leave the forest, he had no right to intrude on this.

"I found Diaval." Aurora murmered, feeling her godmother tense.

It was then Diaval decided to exit the woods, his head bowing to his queen.

"Mistress." He greeted, an ache in his chest as her face turned into a façade.

"Come, we need to leave from here. I'll deal with those vile creatures later."

He nodded, and as she began to walk away with her arms around Aurora, Diaval could only watch. He stayed a fair amount of paces back, longing to touch her but knowing he couldn't.

He remembered the conversation she had had with Aurora, and a small spark of hope alit in his heart. If she let him explain, then perhaps he _could_ fix it. He had to try.

**A.N: Alright, it's inbetween happy and angsty. Happy? Lol I'm joking, but yeah. Diaval's back, yay! And them sirens bout to get what's coming to them.**

**On another note, Aurora and Diaval's relationship is quite strong in my story. I believe it would be, he raised her. Also, considering the amount of time Diaval spent with Maleficent, he probably got just as close to her as she did. But to me the relationship is purely a sort of father/daughter relationship.**

**With that, I end this chapter. Thanks for reading and please review!**


	12. Chapter Twelve

**A.N: So, you're all pretty happy. I'm glad, I like it when my readers are happy. I also like totally angering them and sometimes causing riots via review but hey, I'm a person of mixed personalities. But seriously, I am so thankful for all of you who've reviewed, and favourited/followed. You're my motivation guys!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners.**

...

Diaval watched Maleficent from a far, they had walked all the way to the other end of the Moors. It was for their safety she had said, until she could deal with the creatures.

Aurora and her sat leaning against the trunk of a tree, talking as he and his mistress used to do. _Used to _for what was days ago seemed like decades. Soon the princess stood and left, giving him a sympathetic look. He mumbled a quiet warning for her not to stray.

"Diaval, come here."

His head snapped up, and he too, slowly walked towards his Mistress.

"Mistress." He greeted, making his movements as slow and unthreatening.

"Sit with me?" She offered, gesturing to the spot in front of her.

The faerie could detect the still attached fondness in her voice, and the love which had survived her recent heartbreak. As she had told Aurora, even without hearing his reason her heart was lifted with Diaval.

Diaval sat across from her, the ghost of a smile on his lips.

"Aurora has told me her side of the story, but there are a considerable amount of holes. I'd like to hear the rest of it."

Diaval couldn't resist the small sigh of relief, she _wanted_ to listen. Perhaps he could mend what had been done.

"After I sent Aurora to rest," Maleficent grinned at that, remembering the girl's reaction. "I sat by the stream to think, as you know I killed a man that day."

Maleficent curtly nodded, tipping her head as if to say, 'go on.'

"I took notice to the girl, which I later realized a siren, watching from the woods. I felt like I was being pulled to her. When I tried to approach her she ran, and I foolishly followed." He spat, obviously disgusted.

"Sirens attract men like that Diaval, you couldn't have controlled it if she intended for you to follow." Maleficent comforted, hating the look on his face.

"I came to the lake, and she was waiting. She called herself Giselle, told me she was waiting for me. After that it was all sort of a blur."

Diaval took a small glance upwards, assessing his mistress's facial features. There wasn't so much hurt there anymore, but diffenent confliction.

"When she grabbed me, I lost control of my body. It was like being a prisoner in my own mind, I didn't have any control over what I did, or what I said."

Maleficent's eyes flicked to his. He really hadn't any control over his actions? If that was true, then maybe her heart could be mended faster than before.

"Mistress I beg forgiveness, I never wanted to hurt you. It _killed_ me to watch myself do that." Diaval's face was one of immense pain, his eyes pooling with unushed tears.

Maleficent opened her mouth to speak, but nothing would come out. Her words thickened in her throat, refusing to leave her tongue.

"I understand." She said in a cold indifference, she still needed those guard walls around her heart.

"No you don't Mistress. Through everything that has happened, _everything,_ that was the hardest and most painful thing ever to happen to me."

Maleficent drew back at his response, startled and shocked at the same time.

"It broke my heart." He finished, looking down in shame.

"I forgive you." She then spoke the three words he had longed and dreaded to hear. "It was not your fault, as Aurora said, but you seem to have some conflictions of it. So I forgive you."

"Thank you Mistress." He breathed, a small piece of the weight lifting from his shoulders.

"It hurt, not so much physically as mentally, being struck like that again." She supplied hestitantly, trying to get her heart to trust a man again.

"I know." And that was all he could reply to that, but while saying it his voice lightened.

She was talking to him, really talking. He had feared that she would completely close herself off, as she had done years before.

Maleficent had tried, he had seen it. But at least with Aurora as a crutch for love she was able to keep her heart hanging by a thread.

A tear slipped from her eye, and he instinctively went to brush it away.

She could see his hand coming towards her, and it killed her that she had to _remind_ herself he sought not to hurt faerie felt pride in herself when she did not flinch at his cool touch.

Diaval was again, elated at her reactions. She didn't tense, or flinch, or even blink.

A small smile crept onto her lips, her downcast eyes raising to meet his.

"You mended my heart." She whispered, her smile turning shy.

"Pardon Mistress?"

"You mended my heart, then and now. When I was hurting over Stefan, you were there, and now, I am hurting again and you are still here. Still comforting me..."

"I'll be here till the day I die, I doubt anything but would keep me away."

"I still trust you Diaval, just as much as before. What I lost was in myself, the ability to believe I could be loved like that, but if it came down to it, I still trusted you just as much."

Diaval smiled genuinely, an even greater weight coming from his shoulders. He felt light and good again, and perhaps now he knew how his mistress felt when her heart was mended.

"I will guard you with nothing but my life, I'll guard every aspect of you." He vowed, noticing the way her eyes flickered from him to the ground.

"You already have. And you protected Aurora, she told me what happened at the lake, and before that, with the guard."

"She's as much as a child to me as if I had actually had one of my own."

"Did you wish for it? A family?"

"If I had never gotten caught under the net I would have never met you, and I would have never known what a true family meant."

"Then I'm still willing to try. This was but a setback, as far as I'm concerned it wasn't you, but a creature in your place." She told him, offering a slim hand for him to take.

He took it gently, placing a soft kiss onto her knuckles.

And in the bushes the Princess of the Moors smiled.

...

Giselle only had a moment to look up as she heard the faerie approach, before her fist collided with her cheek.

Maleficent shook her fist, uncaring for the sting in her knuckles.

"That was for Diaval's sake. He's too good of a man to hit a woman, even one as filthy as you." She sneered, smirking in satisfaction as Giselle clutched her cheek in shock.

"Except for you." She retorted, glaring at the faerie.

Maleficent punched her again, this time knocking her to the ground.

"And that one was for me, for everything that you put me through."

Faeries were not usually so directly violent, but obviously there were exceptions.

"What are you going to do to me?" Asked Giselle, slowly standing up again.

"I'll rid you and your sisters of the world."

"So you're going to kill us..."

"No, I'm incapacitating you." And with a forceful shove Maleficent pushed the siren into her crystal lake.

The lake suddenly began to freeze over, before anyone could act or even acknowledge it was happening. Green magic flowed from Maleficent's fingertips. Giselle shrieked as her lake was frozen over, trapping her inside.

"You will not die, and if anyone willingly and knowingingly tries to free you they will be successful. Though I doubt any would want to free a creature such as yourself, and that is my curse to you."

Giselle's shrieks ceased, and the beautiful form she masked herself in suddenly disappeared, Maleficent turned her back and began to walk away.

After exiting the Moors a sudden wave of self-fulfillment washed over her and she smiled. Aurora waited with Diaval for her, and one look from her godmother told them both that Giselle and her sisters would not bother anyone for a very long time.

Wrapping her arms around the faerie Aurora let her chin rest against Maleficent's shoulder.

"It's over?" She whispered in her ear, glancing at the anxious Diaval.

"As much as it could be, and don't worry about your father, I've been dealing with him for years."

Raising her ear to the faerie's Aurora lowered her voice even more.

"I think someone else is begging for reassurances." She whispered, drawing away from her godmother.

Taking a deep breath Maleficent nodded, turning towards Diaval. They shared and awkward grin, and both simultaneously averted their gazes.

"Well... I'll just be... by the orchard, yes that's it, by the orchard."

With a sly grin the princess was off, leaving only Diaval and Maleficent together.

"I hope you gave her what she deserved." Diaval started, shooting her an awkward version of his grin.

"Of course. I am a very justice-driven person after all." Maleficent supplied back, casting a small smile in light banter.

"And turning me into a dog is justified Mistress?" Diaval answered back, his muscles relaxing somewhat.

"Well of course, and a fine dog you make."

Diaval longed to have a nice scoop of mud in his hands to throw at her, but unfortunately, no such thing was around.

"And my mistress makes a fine attraction to danger, I wonder if danger is attracted to beauty."

Maleficent smiled and chuckled, taking a few testing steps forward.

"If danger is indeed attracted to beauty, that must be why you are not often in it."

Diaval falsely scoffed, putting a hand to his chest.

"My beautiful self attracts plenty danger."

"And you say so proudly?"

"If only to contradict you Mistress."

"Cocky animal aren't you?"

"If only to annoy you Mistress." Diaval replied back, smirking in banter.

"Are you going to keep answering me like that?"

"If only to further annoy you Mistress."

Maleficent closed the distance, placing a soft kiss on his lips.

"Would you kiss me again?" Maleficent asked, her voice a mere whisper.

"If only to please you Mistress." Diaval breathed, smiling as their lips met again.

**A.N: Sorry for the wait, hope you like it. Please review and thanks for reading! Oh yeah and we should all rejoice! Giselle is vanquished! (For now, hehe.) I'm trying to reach forty-five reviews, which means (hopefully) I get six reviews on this chapter. I'll post as soon as I can. Love you all!**


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**A.N: Thanks for all your reviews guys! Unfortunately we did not reach my goal of forty-five but we got super close, so thanks to those who reviewed. Also the seemingly increased delay with this chapter is due to my most recent hospital visit... It may come as a shock to you but I get hurt a lot. But thanks to a recovering knee I will have plenty time to write my chapters. The only thing I'm struggling with is the length of this story, I don't know when I should end it or if I'm just stringing it on. Anyway, on to the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners.**

...

Though he was still wary of it, Diaval was nearly assured that his mistress no longer thought the terrible thoughts she had before, and she was no longer freighted something would hurt her. _He_ would hurt her.

After all, it had been a good month since the 'Giselle incident' and life had been relatively normal, save the fact that now Aurora was constantly around the Moors, and there were certain things she and Diaval did that was not present in their past relationship as companions...

Mainly kisses, after so long of trying to get them to kiss, Aurora wished they would stop.

Stefan still regularly attacked, but this was not something the pair hadn't been used to. Aurora at first had been scared, but quickly began to view it as more of a nuisance than an attack.

"Godmother, do you think it will ever stop? That there will be peace between the lands one day?" Aurora asked one day, while walking with her Godmother.

"I suppose so, perhaps when your father passes away. But then the people will turn to you for leadership." Maleficent answered, gently placing a tiara made of flowers on the girl's head.

"I made it pretty clear that I wished to abdicate my claim to that throne."

"It all depends on what your father told the people." Maleficent replied lightly, stealing a small glance at the girl.

"I'm glad I haven't seen him in a while."

"Do you miss it?"

"My father? Goodness no, I barely knew him and with what he's done there's no way I co-"

"No silly Beastie, your life. Being a normal girl, having little romantic encounters..." Maleficent asked, a teasing tint in her voice at the last of the list.

Aurora began to blush slightly, biting her lips slightly.

"I wasn't exactly normal growing up Godmother," Aurora laughed, and the faerie chuckled in agreement. "I mean, I'm not unhappy here. It was always my dream to meet my faerie godmother, and see the Moors. Later it was to live here with you, so quite literally I am living my dreams."

"There are no men in the Moors." Maleficent commented slyly, a smirk appearing on her face.

"Except for Diaval, but you've put your claim on him _pretty_ clearly." Maleficent's mouth fell and her head whipped around the face Aurora. "Oh please Godmother, don't act surprised that I comment on it, you can barely go an hour without kissing him." Aurora teased.

"That's," Maleficent paused to laugh, "not true."

"Oh it is, you greet each other with a kiss, you say goodbye with a kiss, you talk with a kiss, you go to bed with a kiss..."

Aurora stopped as her godmother swatted her arm, though still in light nature.

"You exaggerate."

"Not by much." Aurora mumbled, receiving another swat.

Just then the man in question flew towards them, transforming in front of the two.

"Hello there." He greeted, smiling at the two. "The prince has left the palace." He reported, glancing briefly at Aurora.

Maleficent smiled and on instinct pecked him on the lips, before blushing and stepping back. Aurora raised an eyebrow and smirked, a victorious look on her face.

"Out of all the things you could of picked up, you chose to remember that Philip is leaving?" Aurora asked skeptically.

"It stuck, there was really nothing but goodbyes." Diaval defended, but he knew in his heart that he chose to remember it because he knew it would interest Aurora.

"Do you want to meet him by the creek again Beastie?" Maleficent offered, nodding with her head towards the direction of Aurora's old home.

Aurora was about to deny everything, before she truly thought about it. There had been an attraction there true, and he would not be passing through here again for who knows how long...

Nodding her head the three headed down the familiar path, taking special certainties that there were no wandering guards.

"Could I go meet him alone?" Aurora inquiried, almost nervous about the answer.

Both the man and the faerie felt a surge of over-protectiveness wash over them, but nodded.

"We'll wait here." Maleficent announced, sitting against a tree.

"I won't be long." Aurora promised, smiling.

"Until then." Concluded Maleficent, watching as her charge disappeared down the path.

"Should I make sure they...?" Diaval's voice trailed off, but Maleficent knew what he meant.

"Of most definitely." She said smiling, Aurora would be embarrassed yes, but that was what guardians were for.

...

Philip had as promised, come her way again, just as hopeful about seeing Aurora as she was he.

She stood up at his approach, much like their first meeting. Offering him the stream to water his horse Aurora suddenly felt burning like never before in her cheeks. He sat, gesturing for her to do the same.

"You're a prince." She stated, not finding anything else to say. Incredibly awkwardly she swept herself into a curtsie.

"I find that that diludes most people from being their true selves around me." He told her, trying to ease the tension.

"Well it serves as an honour to meet you Prince Philip, before I knew you were as such."

"And I would say the same, yet I find myself very guilty at the fact that I know nothing of you."

"Well what would you like to know, Your Highness?" Aurora asked teasingly, feeling suddenly at ease. She sat beside him, still a fair distance, enough that if Diaval was watching he wouldn't be uneased.

"Anything you could spare to tell me. I know your name, and though it is beautiful it is not much to know, besides the fact it is the same as the lost princess's."

"Lost princess?" Aurora's head tilted, much like Diaval's when he was confused.

"More on that later, tell me more of yourself." Philip urged, smiling when she did.

"My three aunts raised me, but now I live with my godparents. It was a little complicated... but now everything is perfect." She told him truthfully, deciding to leave out other details for now.

"Well, I think that's absoloutely amazing that life is so good to you. Would you like to hear about the princess now?"

Aurora nodded her head eagerly, already having some idea what the story would tell.

"There was once this faerie, and she used to be good, but then something happened and she turned into a spiteful, evil creature." Aurora cringed slightly, trying to seem oblivious. "Not much was known, except that she appeared at King Stefan and the Queen's baby's christening, and cursed the child."

"What was the curse?" Aurora asked, trying to play a part she didn't know she could.

"That the baby would fall into a deathlike sleep by pricking her finger on a spindle, and that only true love's kiss could wake her. This was to happen before the babe's sixteenth birthday."

"Hm." Aurora mumbled, casting her eyes down but gesturing for him to go on.

"The King hid the baby away with three good pixies, for sixteen years and a day. So she would be safe by the time she came back. But she came back on her birthday, which was also the day I got to the palace."

"So the Princess didn't go to sleep?"

"They don't think so, after the curse was cast they destroyed all the spindles in the land and kept them in a room, deep in the palace. When they checked they were not touched, so she couldn't have been down there."

Aurora was fascinated by her own story, how odd to hear your tale from someone else.

"What happened to the faerie?"

"She has supposedly kidnapped the Princess, they were able to capture her a while ago but she escaped. King Stefan was enraged, and now he seeks to do nothing but destroy her, and get his daughter back."

"What a sad tale..." Aurora said, her eyes flicking towards a tree. Was that? No, besides even if it was, that tree branch was far enough away to be out of earshot.

"I think something more happened, something the King didn't tell me, or the kingdom." Philip announced, looking over at her to see her reactions. Her head whipped up in surprise and almost... relief?

"Really? Why is that? What do you think happened?" She asked hurriedly, inching closer to him.

"Obviously that faerie had such anguish brought to her that she felt the need to take revenge. I was just a child myself when it happened, no more than two years old."

"The King still attacks the Moors, isn't that where she lives?" Aurora prodded, hoping to guide him to the right conclusions.

"Yes, I think he did something to her. Something that was so terrible that it ruined her, or I guess I should say, damaged her." There you go, keep going. "I trust you to not repeat this, can I do that?"

"Of course, of course." Aurora gushed.

"King Stefan seems to have one thing on his mind, destroying her. My father wants to do trade with him, and all is in order with that, the alliance will be splendid, but there's always this... glint in his eye."

"I think you're right. I think the King did something terrible, and that maybe that faerie isn't evil. I think she's probably not even in the wrong, if the princess didn't even fall under the curse."

"She still kidnapped the princess."

"How do we know that's what happened?"

Philip looked taken back by that statement but the more he thought about it, the more he realized he _didn't_ know.

"I hope that both the princess and the faerie, get their happy endings in the end."

"I hope she gets her happy ending too." Aurora concluded on the matter. "So, did you get lost again?" She asked, steering the conversation away from such matters as her godmother.

Diaval's eyes narrowed as the prince edged closer towards his child, they weren't exactly an arm's distance anymore.

"I was more or less looking for something around these parts." He whispered, grinning charmingly.

"And did you find it?" Aurora replied, just as charming.

"I did." The Prince said, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear. "What's this?" He asked, gently stroking the tiara on her head.

"Oh just a gift from my godmother." Aurora told him, she could hear a raven sqwaking and knew that Diaval was indeed watching over her.

Philip turned towards the noise, with his brow furrowed.

Aurora made gestures from behind him, and Diaval picked up that her message went somewhere along the lines of 'Leave, you're embarassing me and I can't believe you're doing this.'

"Ha, it's like that bird is watching us. Maybe he's guarding you..." Philip teased, watching as the bird took flight.

"Yeah, how funny." Aurora laughed, making a mental note to attack Diaval with mud later on.

Phlip turned back around, and felt his breath catch. He'd never seen such a beautiful girl before.

"May I kiss you?" He asked boldly, placing a hand over her's.

"I've never kissed anyone before..." Aurora confessed, not exactly sure if it would make a difference. She'd seen Maleficent and Diaval kiss, but had yet to actually know what it felt like.

"Neither have I." Admitted Philip, shrugging it off. "There's a first time for everything."

Aurora nodded, slowly leaning forward as he did. She tilted her head to the side, and slowly their lips met. Their eyes closed and Aurora's hands slowly wrapped around his neck.

Together they both made a move to deepen the kiss, but it didn't go quite as planned.

Aurora drew back, a mad blush tinting her cheeks, a petite finger on her lip. She laughed it off and leaned back in.

...

"How'd it go?" Maleficent asked, standing up at her Beastie's approach.

"Well, I had my first kiss." Aurora decided to cut straight to the point, there were no secrets between her godmother and her.

The faerie wasn't sure what to say, her mouth just hung open in a shocked silence. She blinked once before regaining her mental balance, the only other time this has happened was when Aurora had announced her as her faerie godmother.

"O-oh... Uh, how nice." Maleficent got out, still sort of shocked. "And how was that?"

"Well, Diaval interrupted right before it happened..." Aurora accused lightly, raising her eyebrows.

"I'm sorry, I had an idea it would happen, I was just being 'over' protective." Maleficent said, trying to stop the chuckle that was most definetly going to surface.

It was comical really, she could almost see the scene in her mind.

"Well, I shooed him and it happened. It was an okay first kiss, we weren't very synchronized and he bit me mid-way through but after that-"

Maleficent couldn't control the small fits of laughter that time.

"He _bit_ you? That takes some serious disorganization..."

"Oh don't tease, we had no idea what to do. Though I felt like I should of, seeing you and Diaval _all_ the time."

"How did he bite you?" Maleficent chuckled, her face remaining in a wide smile even after she stopped laughing.

"My lip got caught while we... deepened it, okay?" Aurora admitted, that blush that she had just gotten rid of returning.

"Hm..." Maleficent took a moment to think. "I can see how that could happen." She concluded, wrapping an arm around the girl.

"You're taking this surprisingly easily..." Aurora said warily, glancing at the faerie.

"Well, you've yet to tell your godfather."

"True. But before I tell him I still have to attack him with mud."

Maleficent laughed, feeling care-free for the first time in years.

...

Later in the Moors, around dinner, Diaval had been sitting peacefully under a tree beside the stream, in his human form. A sudden explosion of mud erupted from the stream, followed by the array of handfuls of mud being catapulted towards him.

He looked to the other side, finding exactly what was to be predicted. Aurora along with Maleficent, looking triumphant at his utter defeat as he essentially had to hide behind the tree.

He shook his head a content smile on his lips still though. He knew exactly what this was for, but surely this meant war against the faerie and his little fledgling.

**A.N: So this was quite a sweet little chapter, I'm just in that sickly sweet mood. It was also the longest chapter of this story, which is pretty cool...**

**I believe that being teenagers, Aurora and Philip are bound to have some awkward encounters, and let's face it, the first kiss is the kiss no one knew what the Hell to do. It also has strong family tones to it, which I also love to write. **

**Diaval and Maleficent seem like the over-protective parents type in my opinion, but in a comical, not quite that serious, way. I also just think its a lot of fun to write. **

**And finally ending on this note, I thank you for reading, following and favouriting and especially reviewing! Love you all! **


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**A.N: Hello my lovelies, thanks for all your beautiful reviews. My only forenote on this chapter is that it's like an emotional roller-coaster. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners. **

...

"Was that really necessary?" Diaval asked, trying in vain to wipe away the blotches of mud on his face.

"It was the Princess's attack, not mine." Maleficent told him with a sly smile, angling her body away from him.

"And that first explosion of mud was Her Highness's sudden devolopment of magic?"

"I was only obeying Her Highness's orders, no one can disobey the princess."

"In most cases you're correct, except for yourself, _Your Majesty_." Diaval replied with a smile, silently coming closer to the faerie.

"Hm. Then I'll admit, I found it funny. Come on, it was _harmless_."

"Harmless Mistress? I was attacked with mud for over half an hour."

"Oh, a little mud has never hurt anyone."

"You'll regret saying that by the end of the day Mistress." Diaval played, wrapping his arms around her waist. She jumped slightly, but relaxed into his touch.

"Are you threatening me Diaval?" She played along, sliding her head towards him.

"One would be foolish to threaten the Queen of the Moors, Mistress."

"Very foolish indeed. Even if you are..._ trying_ to distract me." She smiled at him, moving to leave his arms.

Diaval rubbed his fingers up and down her waist, smiling as she faltered.

"Trying Mistress? I seem to be succeeding, I mean, if you're so easily distracted you will have to always be wary of danger."

"Maybe you just have... special powers over me."

"I believe it's the other way around."

"Is it? So you'll stand down if I ask you to?"

"Oh no Mistress, that was a clear act of war."

"Then aren't you committing treason against yourself?"

"I think you're worth the treason."

"You'll have a grand time finding troops. All Moorfolk are loyal to Aurora and I.""True, I guess I'll just have to help myself then."

"Hm? And how are you going to do that?" Maleficent purred, turning in his arms to face his face.

She moved closer to him, and began placing her soft kisses against the corner of his mouth.

Diaval's voice faltered, and after trying and failing to say something he simply gave in and began kissing her back.

"Now who's distracted?" Maleficent teased, wrapping her own arms around his neck. Diaval began to kiss around her ear, making his way down her neck.

They'd never taken _that _step, this was about as intimate they got, but both were content with that.

Maleficent moaned and let her head fall back, exposing more of her pale neck. Her head was moving in short breaths, in rhythm with Diaval.

Neither of the two heard Aurora coming towards them, but unfortunately she was.

"One day, just one day is all I ask for. One day where I don't see you two kissing. Is that so much to ask for? This should be labelled as emotional scarring or something."

The faerie blushed slightly, taking a miniature step backwards.

"Hello Aurora, what is it you need?" She asked, straightening her wrap.

"I just came to keep you company, though I really should of learned you need at least a foreword, after last time..."

"Oh, well we're glad for your company. Though you should know, Diaval's declared war against us."

Aurora giggled, twisting in her skirts slightly.

"Has he? Whatever for?" She asked sweetly, still giggling.

"Oh don't give me that. Your Queen has already given up the information to save herself."

"Well _thanks_ Godmother."

Maleficent put her hands up in surrender, smirking as she turned her back to the two.

"I was pressured into it."

"No you weren't." Diaval scoffed, wrapping his arms around Maleficent's waist again.

"Are you serious? I am _right_ here!" Aurora exclaimed, stomping her way to face Maleficent again. She took the faerie's hand in hers pulling her out of Diaval's grasp.

"Your Godmother was no hostage of mine, I simply was embracing her." Diaval defended, though still playful.

"Yes, well, since you've declared war on us I have no choice but to separate you two for the time being. Come on Godmother." Aurora declared, dragging away his mistress.

Diaval slumped, watching as Aurora determinedly kept Maleficent walking, while the faerie kept glancing behind her. Eventually she shrugged, and giving a small wink, walked with Aurora.

"Now what Beastie? We must return to the tree for rest soon."

"The time I go to bed at is far too early Godmother."

"It gives you enough energy for the day ahead."

"But how are we to know which day will be our last? Shouldn't we live an exciting and adventurous life?"

"Wise are your words Beastie, but do you not think that this calm is refreshing?"

"No, you're right I am glad nothing has attacked or harmed us in a while. I wonder what the human world is like right now, I feel very protected inside the Moors. Like there is no evil, but that is not the case in their world."

"This war has been going on for sixteen years Aurora, the humans have become accustomed to being controlled by evil."

"What about you? Does a small part of you remember what it was like without the tinting of human evil?"

"A small part, my heart often forgets, but it is the same thing that reminds me of it as well."

Aurora walked silently for a while, contemplating her godmother's words. Finally, the faerie spoke again.

"Stefan left many scars on my heart, but they are only that, scars. He tried to scar my skin, as I'm sure you saw, but he couldn't."

"So... when you think of the scars the memories come back?" Aurora asked, trying to understand.

"Yes, in a way. Take the brutality on my arm for example," the princess flinched at the reminder, "or a branding of livestock, they are there to serve as a reminder or a message."

"And scars to the heart Godmother?"

"The same, reminders and messages. A painful reminder as it may be, that I loved and lost, and a message that they are only scars now. They don't openly bleed as a wound does."

"So it is like a message that you healed yourself and it became a mere reminder."

"Precisely."

"I understand now Godmother."

"Only, I did not heal myself. I had a considerable amount of help from a certain princess, and Diaval."

"No one can carry the weight of their world on their shoulders, not without help anyway."

"Ah, but I don't wish for you to carry that weight Beastie."

Aurora shrugged, slowing her walk to a stillness.

"What if they find a way to hurt you again Godmother? What if you're caught again, and I just have to sit and wait here again?"

"Such morbid thoughts for a child of such innocence."

"Child, Godmother? I know I didn't spend much time in the _real_ human world but I understood that there I am no child. In fact, my father wanted to marry me off almost immiediately."

"What a shame that would of been, but in my eyes you will always be a child."

"You didn't answer my question Godmother."

Maleficent glanced at the girl, and upon analyzing her expression she decided to give her answer.

"Well, if I were captured again I would only hope Diaval would come and save me. Diaval would leave you here as you said, and you would have a duty to the Moors. You are their princess."

"You would expect me to rule? I wield no magic I cannot protect the Moors as you do."

"Your aunties could help slightly in that area, and the Moorland people would aid you with whatever is needed."

"What a terrible fate it would be, to see Diaval leave to find you without knowing what is to come."

"A worse fate Beastie, is being captured and knowing that your loved ones may be in danger for you. That is why we leave you behind the wall, not because you'll be no help, but because it's the one way I can still protect you while I'm gone."

"Yes but if you and Diaval fell, I would never know. I would of lost both my parental figures in a stride."

"You're strong Beastie, don't you worry about it."

"I wish it was that simple. How do you do it? You are always able to move forward, and let nothing beat you. It's an honourable trait, one I fear I don't possess."

"You possess it, I know you do. You've been living full-time in the Moors for around two months, and in that time there were trials that you faced, and you always got back up for more in the end."

Aurora smiled and wrapped her arms around the faerie, holding the embrace for a few beautiful seconds.

"One day my father's attempts will cease, whether from his death or his madness, then there will only be small problems for us to discuss."

"Of course." Maleficent drew herself back, grinning mischievously while doing so. "We have a bit of a problem with returning to our tree, I do believe Diaval will be waiting there, most likely armed."

"A fear no mud, but I don't think my dresses can take much more." Retorted Aurora, matching her godmother's grin.

"Let us be stealthy then, Your Highness, and perhaps we can make it without a fight."

...

Though the Queen and Princess were able to avoid the mud-fight as planned, there were other battles to be fought. Stefan had drawn back his forces slightly, only to launch an attack the week after.

Maleficent was awaken from her sleep with a great thunder. Shaking her head groggily she cleared her vision and sat up. Morning light peeked through the hills, and Diaval was beside her in an instant.

Transforming himself into a man, the loyal companion looked at his mistress for instructions. He would do anything for her, save stay behind.

"Come Diaval, I'd like to make sure nothing too damaging comes from this surprise attack."

Diaval nodded his head, slipping down from the tree to help Maleficent from it. His hands wrapped around her waist, and when her feet met the ground they went to her hands.

It was an act of support, to show that they were both there for each other no matter what. With their fingers entwined they headed to Maleficent's great wall.

Maleficent knew she was being selfish to not give the order for Diaval to transform, but in his presence she was always more calm and she always felt safer.

Diaval knowing her so well, understood but didn't mind. He would gladly stay with her than fly free a raven, and to a bird that was a sign of the uttermost devotion.

The pair stepped out of the Moors, their safe haven, to be greeted by what looked like a very large chunk of the King's armed forces.

"Stefan will be somewhere." Maleficent mumbled, her emerald eyes searching. "He wouldn't launch an attack so big and not be there to lead it."

"Mistress, this attack is on you, should you not conjure your own forces?"

"I will wait until the moment I know I need to fight. These men have done nothing wrong themselves, they serve a wicked king and only follow orders given to them."

Diaval nodded at his mistress's wisdom, but the same good-hearted nature could be her downfall and he wasn't sure if he was ready to make that sacrifice.

With a daring flick of her wrist Maleficent gained control of the first and closest catapult, and with another it burst into splinters of wood.

Murmers erupted in what was an almost still camp, they knew she was here, expected it almost. Diaval understood in a moment, that they knew catapults would not gain entry, that it was merely a ruse to get Maleficent out of the Moors.

Diaval released Maleficent from his gentle grip, and transformed himself into a wolf. A wolf was the most ferocious animal he could think of, despite his distaste for them.

The faerie's head whipped towards her servant, whom had charged unseen forces, and it wasn't long before she too understood.

Soon masses of guards surrounded her, but she was quick to think and even quicker to act. The magic poured from her hands, which were shaking slightly with all the effort she was putting into the task.

As the first time Maleficent took Aurora into the Moors the guards began to levitate in their armor. They gave out cries of surprise and anger, thrashing against the magic which had possessed them.

With a final flick the herd of guards were sent in the opposite direction, no longer a threat though Maleficent knew that that was only a small portion of the guards at hand.

She heard horse hooves approaching behind her, and upon turning she realized that she was alone in the clearing.

Worried thoughts of Diaval were extinguished when Stefan himself rode to where she stood. His eyes narrowed at the faerie, madness and evil darkening the once full of life irises.

The last Maleficent had seen of him he had been carving a message into her arm. She took a few steps backwards, though her eyes showed no fear.

Stefan chuckled, putting an armoured hand up to signal his troops to keep a distance.

"Your man-servant left you alone?" He mocked, noticing how bare she looked.

Maleficent remained silent, instead raising her arms to attack Stefan with her magic.

"Ah, ah, ah." The King wiggled his finger, and his tone was sickly calm, like he was scolding a child. "You don't want to do that."

Finally, the faerie spoke.

"Why not?"

Stefan made his own hand gesture, and Maleficent heard movement amongst the troops behind him.

Then just as she thought that she could may be able to make it out of the situation alive, all hope of it vanished when Stefan revealed to her what he had up his sleeve.

Two guards dragged the nearly limp form, whose eyes were filled with despair and guilt. Maleficent's breath shuddered as they took a clump of hair in their hands and forced his head up, placing a sword at the base of his neck.

Stefan smirked as her eyes widened in horror, how satisfied he felt to reduce her to this.

She couldn't feel anything, she could barely breath, all she could do was stare at their captive with terrified eyes.

Diaval.

**A.N: Sorry for the delay in this chapter, major case of writer's block. Also I'm only *slightly* sorry for the cliffhanger there. Please, by all means drop your thoughts, feels, conspiracy theories or rants into the review box, I'm thankful for your opinions!**

**Thanks for reading, and thanks to any who've followed, favourited or reviewed in the past. **


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**A.N: Sorry about the wait for this one, I've been having a few personal and physical troubles. I was recently diagonosed with an anxiety disorder, and it's been hard to deal with. But never fear, writing is a great output. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maleficent and all rights go to their respective owners. **

...

Maleficent's breathing was shuddered and shallow. Diaval was severely beaten, his face bloodied and bruised. His body had registered that the only way for him to survive was to be in his human form, and now he couldn't escape the same way.

"Stefan he has nothing to do with this!" She shouted, moving towards him.

Stefan drew his sword, pointing it lazily at her as she approached. His head titled to the side in a satisfied smirk as she stopped abruptly.

"Doesn't he? He's the one who rescued your disgusting self from my dungeons, no doubt your relationship is sexual, so by definition he has everything to do with this. Maybe not us, but he has something to do with you..."

Maleficent's shimmering eyes flickered from her lover to the deranged king. Though she was wary she was by no means being cautious, with herself anyway.

"Stefan I said let him go!" She regained that strength in her voice, however false it was.

"Don't try that with me Maleficent! Do not forget you are not the only one with a sword to your neck." And just like that her strength was sucked away from her again.

Diaval hated the sound of her name coming from his lips, the way he said it with such malice. And God, did he ever hate himself in that moment. He was supposed to _protect_ her, and now he was doing everything but.

"What do you want from me Stefan?" Diaval's eyes focused back on his mistress, who's voice had become desperate again. Her stance was anything but strong, he could tell from the way she held her head.

"Come here." Stefan ordered her, simply. She was obviously conflicted about obeying but knowing her position she had no choice.

The faerie walked towards him slowly, keeping herself steeled. Her mind wandered to a thousand different places, a thousand different outcomes. Few turned out well, and even fewer were sane.

She stopped when she was only a few inches from his outstretched arm. Inadvertently, she noticed his hands were gloved in leather, not iron.

Stefan took the final step, keeping his hand out expectantly. Maleficent knew what he was doing. If she took his hand she was symbolizing her defeat and his dominance, but if she didn't...

Maleficent closed her eyes in pain, a lone tear escaping. Somewhere in her mind she knew she was to die, and the thought of never seeing or holding Diaval again, not being able to say goodbye, was excruciating.

Diaval squirmed and struggled as her hand rose to Stefan's, cried out for her to stop. He was rewarded with a backhand and a tormented look from Maleficent.

The faerie's hand finally stopped and rested within Stefan's who roughly clasped and pulled her towards him with it. Her breath was drawn in quickly, as if in fear.

No longer at arm's reach, Maleficent felt Stefan's other hand clasp around her waist. His hand released her, only to come up and stroke her neck. Maleficent felt herself keep herself from squirming, false courage the only thing she could hold on to.

Even Diaval's struggles ceased as he took in the peculiar scene laid out in front of him. The king was stroking his mistress, almost sensually. He looked... satisfied.

Maleficent's stoic face broke when his lips began to touch her neck. She cringed, mumbling objections. His face rose to her ear, and she tensed even more.

"Does he touch you like this?" He whispered into her ear, and her face whipped to meet his.

"I don't understand." She replied, keeping her voice as equally low.

"You understand, you just doing understand why _I'm_ touching you like this."

"Can you not see why? I assume in a few moments you'll be running that dagger through my stomach."

"Always a keen eye..." Stefan smirked and fully revealed the dagger, pressing it up against her neck. Again, it didn't burn her. "Don't worry, it's not for you."

Diaval had begun struggling again, seeing the blade flash against her neck was bringing up memories of rather unpleasant nightmares.

"Come with me willingly," Stefan continued, brushing a stray piece of hair away from her face. "I've placed a vial in your hand, it's more Moonroot extract. Drink it, and I won't kill him."

"He stays here, and your men don't touch him after we leave." Maleficent replied fiercely, feeling the glass in her hand for the first time.

"Fine." She nodded and slowly she unclasped the vial. "Men! Release him but make sure he stays here!"

Diaval was confused as he felt the pressure leave his neck, he was shoved forward, and ungracefully fell to a heap on the ground. He lifted his head just as his mistress put the vial to her lips.

Maleficent had almost forgotten what it had felt like to have your magic ripped away from you, almost. It was an all too unwanted reminder, though it felt different this time. She didn't feel as tired, as immobile. The faerie felt herself lose balance and collapse, but when she tried to move her arm she was able to.

Diaval cried out as she fell, he felt broken all over again. He would never utter the words aloud, but she looked so _weak_ laying there.

"Are you still awake my dear?" Stefan asked, whilst kneeling beside the fallen fae. He took her arm in his hand and drew the same dagger, with a quick swipe he had sliced her arm and she flinched back. She'd obviously felt it. "Perfect."

And then Diaval didn't feel hopeless or broken anymore, he felt an animalistic rage. He was after all, essentially an animal in soul. That son of a bitch king wanted her awake and feeling, he wanted her aware of what was happening and the pain.

But his efforts to get up were fruitless, for by the time he was steady the king's sword was already pointed at him.

"Do not think me cruel, I am being extremely generous in letting you go. You're obviously an effective bargaining chip, but you're not the one I want. She is, but do not mistake me on this, you meddle again and you'll be just as severely punished."

They both glared at each other, Diaval's eyes leaving only when he heard Maleficent cry out as she bound in chains of iron.

"Oh, and you can keep Aurora. If she doesn't want to be what she _really_ is, a human princess, she can keep pretending to be a faerie princess. After all, you'll probably need one." Stefan was taunting him now and Diaval knew it.

The king even had the gall to sheath his sword as if he was not a threat. All Diaval could do was keep silent, wait until they were gone.

"Before Maleficent was in your arms she was in mine, and she is quite beautiful..." Stefan continued, smirking as he remounted his horse and rode away. His soldiers followed, until all Diaval could see of them was their dust on the roads.

Diaval was seething, and a glare was not a powerful enough word to describe his stare. It seemed that he could burn anything in his sight. And then suddenly, he stopped and took a deep breath. He needed to calm down, but _oh God_ did it hurt.

How will he tell Aurora? She'll be totally devastated, he couldn't face her sobbing like that aga-

"Diaval...?" He was snapped out of his thoughts at her meek voice. She already had tears in her eyes. "They took her again didn't they? My father has her again."

Diaval's eyes were the only reply she needed. The young princess sunk the ground, her chest heaving as she sobbed.

"Well we have to go after her, come back inside to be healed." Diaval followed her back through the small clearing that had been made with Aurora's word. He didn't speak until she had given him the jar of healing paste.

"You're staying here." He announced as he applied the paste onto his worst wounds, feeling an immediate sense of relievment as they sealed and the bruises faded.

"No, I'm going with you."

"If you come with me then I'll always be distracted. I can't breathe knowing she's out there, but if anything happens to you, I'll completely suffocate."

"I won't just sit back here and wait again!"

"No! Aurora stay here!" Diaval grabbed onto her shoulders, gently shaking her. Aurora jumped slightly, for she had been startled by his sudden out burst. "I'm sorry..." Diaval realized how tight his grip was, and released her immediately.

"I'll be in the tree then." Aurora mumbled, her eyes filling with unushed tears. "Good luck Diaval. Please do come back." It was incredibly detached but emotional at the same time.

Diaval watched as she spun on her heel and began walking swiftly away. Her skirts were twisting from in front of her legs he could tell, and her hand briefly came up to swipe away fallen tears. If this was the last time he saw Aurora he wanted to have a better image.

"Aurora, I will come back. And when we do, we'll make you a dress that fits."

Her golden hair spun around, and she smiled briefly at him before nodding.

There, Diaval could live with that. He turned from her and began running back through the wall.

...

Maleficent woke on a soft surface, she kept her eyes closed but softly stroked the fabric below her. It was warm, and smooth to the touch, satin perhaps. Her head turned, and light filtered through her closed lids. It made her scrunch her eyes.

How odd a change like this, memories of her last visit still fresh in her mind. Though some aspects stayed the same, she could feel that she was still drugged and though her body seemed numb to it she was most certainly being burned.

Her arm reached out on pure instinct, and pulled some of her sleeve down to come between the iron and her skin.

"I see you're awake." Stefan's voice broke the silence. She could tell he was close to her.

"Why am I here?" The faerie mumbled, her voice hoarse and caught in her throat. "And I don't mean the palace. Why am I _here_?"

"Well it was proven foolish and predictable to keep you in the prisons."

"That's not it, and even so, you won't be torturing me here."

"And how can you be so sure Maleficent?"

She had opened her eyes by now, but kept still.

"Blood would not look well against the golden of Aurora's chambers."

"So you've been in here before." It didn't sound like a question, it sounded like a confirmation.

"While rescuing Aurora."

"She didn't need rescuing..." Stefan growled lowly, causing Maleficent to reevaluate her next choice of words.

"Why am in her room?"

"Well, I'm not going to kill you, right away. May as well keep you here."

"Why aren't you killing me right away? You seemed very keen to do it before."

"You're a lot more fun alive."

Maleficent's eyes flashed dangerously, and anger filled her body until she thought she was going to burst.

"So I exist only because of you're interest in toying with me? As a trophy and plaything for you to entertain yourself with?"

"Oh settle down, do not forget that I could send you back to your original room. I am being merciful Maleficent, take advantage of it."

He rose suddenly, roughly grabbing onto her hands which had been bound in front of her. Stefan threw them over her head and pulled his dagger against her neck.

"You look very discomforted my dear, what troubles you?"

"Would you not be uncomfortable, if a dagger was at your neck?"

"Don't lie, what is it?" He added pressure to the blade, almost breaking through her skin. He twirled his dagger in circles threateningly.

Maleficent knew she could not lie, nor could she say nothing.

"I had a shawl... I don't anymore, and I feel incredibly exposed in my current position." She revealed, still glaring at him.

The king smirked and grabbed a chunk of her hair, roughly pulling her up. He leaned back into her ear, to the point where she could feel his breath against the back of her neck.

"Be thankful that's all that was taken."

For a moment Maleficent's face broke into a fearful one, but she quickly regained herself. Stefan through her down again, and stormed away from the room.

With Stefan gone Maleficent allowed herself to fully feel the raging emotions within her. She was scared, and she could not deny that fact. With nothing else to do but sink into her own thoughts, Maleficent cried.

**A.N: Again, I'm so sorry! This took more than a month, that's so unacceptable! But, last chapter was the most reviewed chapter of this entire story so thanks guys! **

**The angst is strong, but the chances of a happy ending are still there, but they're almost equal to the chances of a not so happy ending... **

**Thanks for all your support, and I hope you liked this chapter. **


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